Rafferty Asset Management LLC Lowers Stake in Ameris Bancorp $ABCB

Key Points

• Rafferty Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 19.6%, now owning approximately 62,536 shares valued at $3.6 million.
• In the first quarter, American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 36.2%, bringing its total to nearly 1.88 million shares, valued at $107.9 million.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Ameris Bancorp with an average price target of $72.14, while DA Davidson set a target price of $81.00.

Rafferty Asset Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Free Report) by 19.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 62,536 shares of the bank's stock after selling 15,285 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned about 0.09% of Ameris Bancorp worth $3,600,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Ameris Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 84.1% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 731 shares of the bank's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 334 shares in the last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors purchased a new stake in Ameris Bancorp during the first quarter valued at $128,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 1,120.2% during the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,904 shares of the bank's stock valued at $167,000 after purchasing an additional 2,666 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 8.8% during the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,251 shares of the bank's stock valued at $187,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, DA Davidson set a $81.00 price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ameris Bancorp currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $72.14.

Ameris Bancorp Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of ABCB traded up $1.57 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $74.41. 288,724 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 423,967. The firm has a market cap of $5.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.28 and a beta of 0.97. Ameris Bancorp has a 12-month low of $48.27 and a 12-month high of $74.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $68.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $62.51.

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.