Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $90.1667.

ABCB has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Ameris Bancorp from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Stephens raised their target price on Ameris Bancorp from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Truist Financial raised their target price on Ameris Bancorp from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $92.00 target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, DA Davidson raised their target price on Ameris Bancorp from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ameris Bancorp

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ABCB. Sound Income Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 51.5% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 547 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at $45,000. Danske Bank A S purchased a new stake in Ameris Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd increased its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 395.4% in the 3rd quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 748 shares of the bank’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 597 shares during the last quarter. 91.60% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Performance

ABCB stock opened at $86.60 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $5.91 billion, a PE ratio of 16.62 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The business has a 50 day moving average of $80.15 and a 200-day moving average of $78.37. Ameris Bancorp has a 12-month low of $59.54 and a 12-month high of $87.99.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $314.36 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $309.58 million. Ameris Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.57% and a net margin of 21.46%.During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.28 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Ameris Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.58%.

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.