Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Receives “Equal Weight” Rating from Stephens

Stephens reissued their equal weight rating on shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) in a report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $53.00 price objective on the bank’s stock.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. DA Davidson reiterated 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, StockNews.com cut shares of Ameris Bancorp from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $50.25.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of Ameris Bancorp stock opened at $47.88 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $46.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $46.11. Ameris Bancorp has a 1-year low of $28.33 and a 1-year high of $53.99. The company has a market cap of $3.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.28 and a beta of 1.05.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The bank reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.04. Ameris Bancorp had a return on equity of 8.30% and a net margin of 17.67%. The firm had revenue of $267.27 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $258.05 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.86 EPS. The business’s revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.47 EPS for the current year.

Ameris Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 8th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.25%. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.38%.

Insider Activity at Ameris Bancorp

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 owns 59,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,826,368.85. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 5.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ameris Bancorp

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in Ameris Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC bought a new position in Ameris Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at about $203,000. Trexquant Investment LP bought a new position in Ameris Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at about $205,000. Xponance Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $211,000. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $218,000. Institutional investors own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

About Ameris Bancorp

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.