Jennison Associates LLC Purchases 414,920 Shares of Ameris Bancorp $ABCB

Key Points

• Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 31.3%, purchasing 414,920 shares to hold 1,741,214 shares (about 2.55%) worth $129.32 million at the end of the quarter.
• Wall Street sentiment is positive: four analysts rate the stock Buy and two Hold, giving a consensus "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $90.17, with several firms raising targets into the $88–$98 range.
• Ameris recently beat quarterly estimates with EPS $1.63 vs. $1.54 expected and $314.36M revenue, pays a $0.20 quarterly dividend (0.9% yield), and trades at a P/E of 16.23 with a $5.77 billion market cap.

Jennison Associates LLC boosted its position in Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Free Report) by 31.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,741,214 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 414,920 shares during the quarter. Jennison Associates LLC owned approximately 2.55% of Ameris Bancorp worth $129,320,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 3.2% in 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 in the last quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP raised its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 4.8% in the third quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP now owns 1,981,061 shares of the bank's stock worth $145,232,000 after purchasing an additional 91,043 shares in the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. raised its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 996,786 shares of the bank's stock worth $74,031,000 after purchasing an additional 27,106 shares in the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 8.3% in the third quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 196,564 shares of the bank's stock worth $14,410,000 after purchasing an additional 15,006 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH increased its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 16.8% during the third quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 394,563 shares of the bank's stock valued at $28,925,000 after acquiring an additional 56,852 shares in the last quarter. 91.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $92.00 price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Monday. DA Davidson increased their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Stephens increased their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $90.17.

Ameris Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ABCB opened at $84.58 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.23 and a beta of 0.93. Ameris Bancorp has a 12 month low of $58.03 and a 12 month high of $87.98. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $79.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $77.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $314.36 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $309.58 million. Ameris Bancorp had a net margin of 21.46% and a return on equity of 9.57%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.28 EPS. Analysts expect that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Ameris Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Ameris Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.58%.

Ameris Bancorp Profile

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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