Ameris Bancorp (NYSE:ABCB) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Ameris Bancorp (NYSE:ABCB) was downgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Raymond James Financial downgraded shares of Ameris Bancorp from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Stephens set a $88.00 price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Ameris Bancorp to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Weiss Ratings began coverage on Ameris Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. They issued a “buy (b)” rating on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Ameris Bancorp from $96.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $91.67.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Up 0.1%

Ameris Bancorp stock opened at $82.37 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $5.53 billion, a PE ratio of 14.90 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.04. Ameris Bancorp has a one year low of $68.80 and a one year high of $93.22. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $86.33 and a 200 day moving average of $84.92.

Ameris Bancorp (NYSE:ABCB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The bank reported $1.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.66 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $317.78 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $323.78 million. Ameris Bancorp had a return on equity of 10.62% and a net margin of 21.98%.During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.59 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ameris Bancorp will post 6.61 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ameris Bancorp

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ABCB. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Ameris Bancorp during the second quarter valued at $881,798,000. North Reef Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 25.1% during the 1st quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP now owns 3,423,243 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $266,979,000 after purchasing an additional 686,215 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 9.4% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,057,347 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $82,463,000 after purchasing an additional 90,883 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at about $62,673,000. Finally, Davis Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the second quarter valued at about $56,124,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.60% of the company’s stock.

About Ameris Bancorp

Ameris Bancorp is the bank holding company for Ameris Bank, a full-service community bank headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Through its banking subsidiary, the company provides financial products and services to individuals, families, businesses and institutions.

Ameris Bank offers deposit accounts, commercial and consumer loans, residential mortgages, home equity financing, treasury management and payment services. The bank also provides wealth management, investment and insurance-related services, along with digital and mobile banking capabilities.

Founded in 1971, Ameris Bank serves communities primarily across the southeastern United States, including Georgia, Alabama, Florida, South Carolina and North Carolina.