Nilsine Partners LLC Grows Stock Position in Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB)

Nilsine Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) by 15.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 60,577 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 8,261 shares during the period. Nilsine Partners LLC’s holdings in Ameris Bancorp were worth $3,487,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 30.7% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 952,058 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $59,570,000 after buying an additional 223,805 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 789,271 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $49,385,000 after buying an additional 19,150 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 158.2% during the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 40,279 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,520,000 after buying an additional 24,680 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new stake in Ameris Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at $385,000. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new stake in Ameris Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at $1,195,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of Ameris Bancorp stock opened at $60.96 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $59.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $61.20. The company has a market capitalization of $4.20 billion, a PE ratio of 11.70 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. Ameris Bancorp has a 52 week low of $47.05 and a 52 week high of $74.56.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The bank reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.16. Ameris Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.57% and a net margin of 21.46%. The business had revenue of $285.86 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $276.06 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.10 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Ameris Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. Ameris Bancorp’s payout ratio is 14.81%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on ABCB shares. Piper Sandler started coverage on Ameris Bancorp in a report on Friday, April 4th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $74.00 price target on the stock. Piper Sandler Companies increased their price target on Ameris Bancorp to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. Raymond James Financial cut their price objective on Ameris Bancorp from $71.00 to $65.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $63.00 price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $71.43.

Ameris Bancorp Profile

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.