Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Receives “Buy” Rating from DA Davidson

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB)‘s stock had its “buy” rating restated by stock analysts at DA Davidson in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $90.00 price target on the bank’s stock. DA Davidson’s price target suggests a potential upside of 11.04% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on ABCB. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $80.00 price target (up from $73.00) on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Truist Financial set a $83.00 price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $84.00 target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ameris Bancorp has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $80.33.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Down 0.3%

Ameris Bancorp stock traded down $0.25 during trading on Friday, hitting $81.05. 417,340 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 480,495. The company has a market capitalization of $5.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.56 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. Ameris Bancorp has a 52 week low of $48.27 and a 52 week high of $83.64. The business’s 50 day moving average is $77.57 and its 200 day moving average is $73.73.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The bank reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $309.92 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $310.48 million. Ameris Bancorp had a net margin of 21.46% and a return on equity of 9.57%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.38 EPS. Analysts predict that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ameris Bancorp

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 10.8% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,077,359 shares of the bank’s stock worth $134,405,000 after buying an additional 202,165 shares during the period. North Reef Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP now owns 1,981,061 shares of the bank’s stock worth $145,232,000 after acquiring an additional 91,043 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,573,486 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $101,815,000 after purchasing an additional 11,909 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Ameris Bancorp by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,258,436 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $92,256,000 after purchasing an additional 39,478 shares during the period. Finally, Congress Asset Management Co. grew its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 996,786 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $74,031,000 after purchasing an additional 27,106 shares during the period. 91.60% of the stock is currently 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.