Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Upgraded to “Hold” by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report published on Monday morning.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Stephens reaffirmed an equal weight rating and set a $53.00 price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Friday. DA Davidson reaffirmed a buy rating on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Monday, January 15th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Ameris Bancorp from $60.00 to $54.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 1st. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Monday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $52.00.

Ameris Bancorp Trading Up 1.3 %

Ameris Bancorp stock opened at $48.50 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $46.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.34. The company has a market capitalization of $3.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.80 and a beta of 1.05. Ameris Bancorp has a 52 week low of $28.33 and a 52 week high of $53.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The bank reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $267.27 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $258.05 million. Ameris Bancorp had a net margin of 18.06% and a return on equity of 8.62%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.86 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.47 EPS for the current year.

Ameris Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 8th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, March 31st were given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.60%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Jon S. Edwards sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.35, for a total value of $355,125.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 59,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,826,368.85. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 5.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ameris Bancorp

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ABCB. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Ameris Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth $39,787,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 50.4% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 845,390 shares of the bank’s stock worth $44,848,000 after buying an additional 283,138 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in Ameris Bancorp by 4,193.6% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 229,408 shares of the bank’s stock worth $12,163,000 after acquiring an additional 224,065 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,193,610 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $222,473,000 after acquiring an additional 205,750 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance grew its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 8.7% during the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 2,514,293 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $133,383,000 after acquiring an additional 201,644 shares in the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ameris Bancorp Company Profile

Ameris Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for Ameris Bank that provides range of banking services to retail and commercial customers. It operates through five segments: Banking Division, Retail Mortgage Division, Warehouse Lending Division, SBA Division, and Premium Finance Division. The company offers commercial and retail checking, regular interest-bearing savings, money market, individual retirement, and certificates of deposit accounts.