Sapience Investments LLC Cuts Holdings in Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB)

Sapience Investments LLC cut its stake in Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Free Report) by 14.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 46,685 shares of the bank's stock after selling 7,680 shares during the period. Ameris Bancorp comprises about 1.7% of Sapience Investments LLC's holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Sapience Investments LLC owned about 0.07% of Ameris Bancorp worth $2,921,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ABCB. Picton Mahoney Asset Management lifted its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 2,436.8% in the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 482 shares of the bank's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 463 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth $51,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 56.1% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,113 shares of the bank's stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 167.5% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,431 shares of the bank's stock worth $90,000 after purchasing an additional 896 shares in the last quarter. Finally, USA Financial Formulas purchased a new position in Ameris Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at $98,000. 91.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Ameris Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of ABCB stock traded down $0.06 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $61.56. The stock had a trading volume of 122,472 shares, compared to its average volume of 402,006. The stock's 50 day moving average is $57.16 and its 200 day moving average is $62.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.24 billion, a PE ratio of 11.82 and a beta of 0.91. Ameris Bancorp has a twelve month low of $45.89 and a twelve month high of $74.56. 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 Monday, April 28th. The bank reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.16. Ameris Bancorp had a net margin of 21.46% and a return on equity of 9.57%. The company had revenue of $285.86 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $276.06 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.10 EPS. Ameris Bancorp's revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ameris Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. Ameris Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is presently 14.81%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ABCB. Piper Sandler began coverage on Ameris Bancorp in a report on Friday, April 4th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $74.00 price target for the company. Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $63.00 price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Piper Sandler Companies boosted their price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp to $74.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Raymond James dropped their target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $71.00 to $65.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $71.43.

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.