Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Shares Pass Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Price breakout: Ameris shares rose above their 200-day moving average of $77.07, trading as high as $83.44 and last at $83.24, a potential bullish technical signal.
• Analyst sentiment: Multiple firms raised price targets (to as high as $94) and the consensus rating is a "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $86.50.
• Fundamentals & dividend: The company posted a slight EPS beat ($1.59 vs. $1.56), has a market cap of $5.68B and low leverage (debt/equity 0.11), and pays a $0.20 quarterly dividend (1.0% yield) with a 13% payout ratio.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Get Free Report)'s stock price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $77.07 and traded as high as $83.44. Ameris Bancorp shares last traded at $83.2440, with a volume of 488,932 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on ABCB shares. Stephens lifted their price objective on Ameris Bancorp from $79.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, DA Davidson set a $94.00 price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $86.50.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $5.68 billion, a PE ratio of 15.98 and a beta of 0.93. 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 50-day moving average price of $79.72 and a 200 day moving average price of $77.07.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The bank reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.56 by $0.03. Ameris Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.57% and a net margin of 21.46%.The firm had revenue of $309.92 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $310.48 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.38 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Ameris Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. Ameris Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is presently 13.33%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ameris Bancorp

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 3.2% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,258,436 shares of the bank's stock worth $92,256,000 after purchasing an additional 39,478 shares during the period. North Reef Capital Management LP grew its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP now owns 1,981,061 shares of the bank's stock valued at $145,232,000 after buying an additional 91,043 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co. grew its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 996,786 shares of the bank's stock valued at $74,031,000 after buying an additional 27,106 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 196,564 shares of the bank's stock worth $14,410,000 after buying an additional 15,006 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH raised its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 16.8% in the 3rd quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 394,563 shares of the bank's stock worth $28,925,000 after buying an additional 56,852 shares during the period. 91.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Ameris Bancorp

Ameris Bancorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Through its principal subsidiary, Ameris Bank, the company offers a broad range of commercial and retail banking services to individuals, small businesses, middle market companies and agricultural customers. Its core business lines encompass deposit services, lending solutions, treasury management, mortgage origination and servicing, insurance products and wealth management.

Ameris Bancorp operates a network of branches and loan production offices across the southeastern United States, including Georgia, Alabama, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.

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