Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Shares Sold by Nuveen Asset Management LLC

Nuveen Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Free Report) by 3.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,061,890 shares of the bank's stock after selling 35,472 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned about 1.54% of Ameris Bancorp worth $66,442,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,880 shares of the bank's stock worth $243,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 3,975 shares of the bank's stock worth $249,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the period. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Ameris Bancorp by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 6,887 shares of the bank's stock valued at $431,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp lifted its position in Ameris Bancorp by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 14,020 shares of the bank's stock valued at $877,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its position in Ameris Bancorp by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 5,174 shares of the bank's stock valued at $324,000 after acquiring an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on ABCB shares. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $63.00 target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Piper Sandler Companies increased their target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp to $74.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report 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 for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Friday, April 4th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $74.00 target price for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $71.43.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ameris Bancorp

In related news, insider Douglas D. Strange purchased 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $56.95 per share, for a total transaction of $56,950.00. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 19,403 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,105,000.85. This trade represents a 5.43% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 5.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Performance

Ameris Bancorp stock traded down $0.12 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $61.19. 370,169 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 403,874. 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 has a fifty-two week low of $45.89 and a fifty-two week high of $74.56. The company has a market capitalization of $4.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.74 and a beta of 0.91. The firm's fifty day moving average is $57.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $62.40.

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

Ameris Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.31%. Ameris Bancorp's payout ratio is 14.81%.

Ameris Bancorp 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.