Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Reaches New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

Shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $86.42 and last traded at $85.8580, with a volume of 582332 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $85.94.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on ABCB shares. Stephens raised their price target on Ameris Bancorp from $79.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $80.00 target price (up from $73.00) on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Piper Sandler set a $84.00 price target on Ameris Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $86.50.

Ameris Bancorp Price Performance

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 company has a market cap of $5.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.48 and a beta of 0.99. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $78.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $74.64.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The bank reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.56 by $0.03. Ameris Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.57% and a net margin of 21.46%.The business had revenue of $309.92 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $310.48 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.38 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ameris Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st were paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.33%.

Ameris Bancorp declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Monday, October 20th that permits the company to buyback $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the bank to repurchase up to 4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ameris Bancorp

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ABCB. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 9,054 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $672,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 3.0% in the third quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 5,231 shares of the bank’s stock worth $384,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Lido Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 2.9% during the third quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 6,294 shares of the bank’s stock worth $463,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in Ameris Bancorp by 1.9% during the second quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 9,535 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $617,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC increased its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 6,183 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $453,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the period. 91.60% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ameris Bancorp Company 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.