Phocas Financial Corp. Sells 9,903 Shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB)

Key Points

• Phocas Financial Corp. reduced its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 5.5%, now holding 171,569 shares valued at approximately $9.88 million, which represents about 1.5% of its total portfolio.
• Analysts have a generally positive outlook on Ameris Bancorp, with target prices ranging from $63.00 to $81.00 and an average rating of "Moderate Buy".
• Ameris Bancorp declared a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, reflecting an annual dividend yield of 1.2% and a payout ratio of 14.08%.

Phocas Financial Corp. lessened its position in Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Free Report) by 5.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 171,569 shares of the bank's stock after selling 9,903 shares during the quarter. Ameris Bancorp comprises about 1.5% of Phocas Financial Corp.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Phocas Financial Corp. owned about 0.25% of Ameris Bancorp worth $9,877,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 6,948 shares of the bank's stock valued at $435,000 after buying an additional 771 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 11.1% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 7,215 shares of the bank's stock valued at $451,000 after acquiring an additional 721 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 30.7% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 952,058 shares of the bank's stock worth $59,570,000 after purchasing an additional 223,805 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Ameris Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $48,380,000. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 13.4% during the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 4,110 shares of the bank's stock worth $257,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ABCB has been the subject of several recent research reports. Stephens restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $63.00 target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. DA Davidson set a $81.00 price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Raymond James Financial dropped their price target on Ameris Bancorp from $71.00 to $65.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $72.14.

Ameris Bancorp Price Performance

ABCB stock traded down $0.78 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $66.04. The stock had a trading volume of 65,546 shares, compared to its average volume of 427,008. Ameris Bancorp has a 52 week low of $48.27 and a 52 week high of $74.56. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $64.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $61.77. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $4.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.69 and a beta of 0.96.

Ameris Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. Ameris Bancorp's payout ratio is 14.08%.

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.