Ameris Bancorp $ABCB Position Lessened by Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH

Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH trimmed its position in Ameris Bancorp (NYSE:ABCB) by 9.9% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 337,539 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 37,116 shares during the period. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH’s holdings in Ameris Bancorp were worth $26,841,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ABCB. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Ameris Bancorp during the second quarter worth $34,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in Ameris Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $66,000. Allworth Financial LP acquired a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $67,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth about $91,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 316.9% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,059 shares of the bank’s stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 805 shares during the period. 91.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of NYSE ABCB opened at $79.67 on Friday. Ameris Bancorp has a 52-week low of $68.80 and a 52-week high of $93.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.04. The business has a fifty day moving average of $83.89 and a two-hundred day moving average of $85.33. The stock has a market cap of $5.35 billion, a PE ratio of 14.41 and a beta of 0.96.

Ameris Bancorp (NYSE:ABCB) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The bank reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.66 by ($0.06). Ameris Bancorp had a return on equity of 10.62% and a net margin of 21.98%. The firm had revenue of $317.78 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $323.78 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.59 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Ameris Bancorp will post 6.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ameris Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 30th. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.47%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ABCB. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on Ameris Bancorp from $96.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 27th. Stephens set a $88.00 price objective on Ameris Bancorp in a report on Monday, July 27th. Raymond James Financial lowered Ameris Bancorp from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised Ameris Bancorp to an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $90.67.

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.