Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $71.43.

A number of research firms have commented on ABCB. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $63.00 target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Friday, April 4th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $74.00 target price on the stock. Piper Sandler Companies raised their target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Raymond James Financial cut their target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $71.00 to $65.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ABCB. Picton Mahoney Asset Management grew its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 2,436.8% in the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 482 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 463 shares during the last quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 84.1% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 731 shares of the bank’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 334 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 167.5% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,431 shares of the bank’s stock worth $90,000 after buying an additional 896 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $105,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

Ameris Bancorp Trading Up 1.4%

ABCB stock opened at $60.59 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.17 billion, a PE ratio of 11.63 and a beta of 0.93. Ameris Bancorp has a 12 month low of $47.05 and a 12 month high of $74.56. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $59.38 and its 200 day moving average is $61.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The bank reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $285.86 million for 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%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.10 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Ameris Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. Ameris Bancorp’s payout ratio is currently 14.81%.

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.