Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) has received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from seven analysts, with six recommending a buy and one recommending a hold.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, which reflects an annualized dividend of $0.80, representing a 1.1% dividend yield.
• Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of Ameris Bancorp's stock, indicating strong institutional confidence in the company.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Get Free Report) has received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the seven ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $72.1429.

Separately, DA Davidson set a $81.00 target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ ABCB opened at $74.78 on Friday. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $71.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $63.87. The stock has a market cap of $5.13 billion, a PE ratio of 14.35 and a beta of 0.97. Ameris Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $48.27 and a fifty-two week high of $76.58. 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 will be paid on Monday, October 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. Ameris Bancorp's payout ratio is presently 14.08%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ameris Bancorp

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 2,311.8% during the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 410 shares of the bank's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 393 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 208 shares during the period. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 1,567.6% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 567 shares of the bank's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 533 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings 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 worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 334 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.

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