Brokerages Set Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Target Price at $71.43

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seven brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $71.43.

ABCB has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $63.00 price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Friday, April 4th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $74.00 price target for the company. Raymond James Financial cut their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $71.00 to $65.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler Companies increased their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 7th.

Ameris Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ABCB opened at $66.45 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $63.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $61.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.76 and a beta of 0.93. Ameris Bancorp has a one year low of $48.27 and a one year high of $74.56.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The bank reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $285.86 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $276.06 million. Ameris Bancorp had a net margin of 21.46% and a return on equity of 9.57%. Ameris Bancorp’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.10 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Ameris Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th were given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.81%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ameris Bancorp

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 3,975 shares of the bank’s stock worth $249,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC increased its position in Ameris Bancorp by 2.5% during the first quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 7,107 shares of the bank’s stock worth $409,000 after buying an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming increased its position in Ameris Bancorp by 8.3% during the first quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 2,346 shares of the bank’s stock worth $135,000 after buying an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in Ameris Bancorp by 73.2% during the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 492 shares of the bank’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in Ameris Bancorp by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 6,887 shares of the bank’s stock worth $431,000 after buying an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.