Ameris Bancorp $ABCB Shares Acquired by Congress Asset Management Co.

Congress Asset Management Co. increased its position in Ameris Bancorp (NYSE:ABCB) by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,202,889 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 10,619 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Ameris Bancorp were worth $95,654,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Ameris Bancorp during the second quarter valued at about $34,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth about $66,000. Allworth Financial LP purchased a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth about $67,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 316.9% in the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,059 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 805 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth about $91,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.60% of the company’s stock.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE ABCB traded down $0.45 on Tuesday, hitting $79.95. The company had a trading volume of 361,674 shares, compared to its average volume of 506,451. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. Ameris Bancorp has a 12-month low of $68.80 and a 12-month high of $93.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.46 and a beta of 0.96. The business has a 50 day moving average of $85.33 and a two-hundred day moving average of $85.14.

Ameris Bancorp (NYSE:ABCB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The bank reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.66 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $317.78 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $323.78 million. Ameris Bancorp had a net margin of 21.98% and a return on equity of 10.62%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.59 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Ameris Bancorp will post 6.61 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, October 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th were given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings assumed coverage on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. They set a “buy (b)” rating for the company. Raymond James Financial downgraded shares of Ameris Bancorp from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $96.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of Ameris Bancorp to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $91.67.

About Ameris Bancorp

Ameris Bancorp (NYSE: ABCB) is a financial holding company whose principal subsidiary, Ameris Bank, provides banking and financial services to individuals, businesses and institutions. The bank offers deposit accounts, commercial and consumer lending, residential mortgages, treasury and payment services, wealth management and other financial solutions.

Founded in 1971, Ameris Bank has grown from a community banking institution in Georgia into a regional bank serving customers across the southeastern United States.