Analysts Set Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) PT at $71.43

Shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Get Free Report) have received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the seven brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $71.43.

Several equities analysts have recently commented on ABCB shares. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $63.00 target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Piper Sandler Companies lifted their price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp to $74.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Raymond James decreased 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. Finally, Piper Sandler initiated coverage on Ameris Bancorp in a report on Friday, April 4th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $74.00 target price for the company.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of ABCB traded up $1.42 on Friday, reaching $62.64. The company's stock had a trading volume of 281,397 shares, compared to its average volume of 404,227. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $57.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $62.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.02 and a beta of 0.91. Ameris Bancorp has a 12-month low of $45.89 and a 12-month high of $74.56.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The bank reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $285.86 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $276.06 million. Ameris Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.57% and a net margin of 21.46%. Ameris Bancorp's revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.10 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ameris Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.28%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. Ameris Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 14.81%.

Insider Transactions at Ameris Bancorp

In related news, insider Douglas D. Strange bought 1,000 shares of Ameris Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $56.95 per share, with a total value of $56,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 19,403 shares in the company, valued at $1,105,000.85. The trade was a 5.43% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 5.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ABCB. North Reef Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP now owns 2,533,000 shares of the bank's stock worth $158,490,000 after buying an additional 208,000 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 36.2% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,875,194 shares of the bank's stock valued at $107,955,000 after acquiring an additional 498,604 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Ameris Bancorp in the first quarter worth about $56,202,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 30.7% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 952,058 shares of the bank's stock worth $59,570,000 after acquiring an additional 223,805 shares during the period. Finally, Congress Asset Management Co. grew its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 13.6% during the 1st quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 933,493 shares of the bank's stock worth $53,741,000 after acquiring an additional 111,939 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

Ameris Bancorp Company 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.