Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Price Target Raised to $57.00

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Free Report) had its price target hoisted by Piper Sandler from $55.00 to $57.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the bank's stock.

ABCB has been the subject of several other reports. StockNews.com lowered Ameris Bancorp from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Stephens reissued an equal weight rating and issued a $53.00 price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Friday. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $60.00 to $54.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 1st. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a buy rating on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Monday, January 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $52.00.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Performance

ABCB stock traded up $0.62 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $48.50. The company's stock had a trading volume of 421,219 shares, compared to its average volume of 381,355. The stock has a market cap of $3.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.80 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $46.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $46.34. Ameris Bancorp has a 1 year low of $28.33 and a 1 year high of $53.99.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The bank reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.06. Ameris Bancorp had a return on equity of 8.62% and a net margin of 18.06%. The company had revenue of $267.27 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $258.05 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.86 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.47 EPS for the current year.

Ameris Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. Ameris Bancorp's payout ratio is presently 14.60%.

Insider Transactions at Ameris Bancorp

In related news, insider Jon S. Edwards sold 7,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.35, for a total transaction of $355,125.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 59,691 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,826,368.85. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 5.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Ameris Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp in the third quarter worth approximately $1,151,000. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at $334,000. Independent Advisor Alliance lifted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 2,312,649 shares of the bank's stock worth $88,783,000 after acquiring an additional 10,692 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 16.2% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 13,188 shares of the bank's stock worth $506,000 after acquiring an additional 1,834 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in Ameris Bancorp by 2.3% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 29,493 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,132,000 after acquiring an additional 662 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

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.