Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seven brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $73.43.

Several brokerages have weighed in on ABCB. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $71.00 price objective (up previously from $67.00) on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Friday, April 4th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $74.00 target price for the company. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $71.00 target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler Companies boosted their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday.

Ameris Bancorp Trading Up 8.3 %

Shares of ABCB opened at $54.90 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.54 and a beta of 0.87. The business has a 50-day moving average of $60.41 and a 200 day moving average of $63.31. Ameris Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $44.23 and a fifty-two week high of $74.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.02.

Ameris Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.36%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Douglas D. Strange bought 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $56.95 per share, for a total transaction of $56,950.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 19,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,105,000.85. This trade represents a 5.43 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 5.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ameris Bancorp

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 4,935.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 67,069 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,861,000 after buying an additional 65,737 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 84.1% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 731 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 334 shares during the last quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. GTS Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Ameris Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth about $287,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 16.9% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 173,391 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $10,849,000 after purchasing an additional 25,010 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.