Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Receives Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Get Free Report) has been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the six ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $70.50.

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Truist Financial dropped their target price on Ameris Bancorp from $73.00 to $68.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $71.00 price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com raised shares of Ameris Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Raymond James reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $71.00 price target (up previously from $67.00) on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th.

Ameris Bancorp Trading Down 1.0 %

ABCB traded down $0.69 during trading on Friday, hitting $66.12. The company's stock had a trading volume of 264,347 shares, compared to its average volume of 398,807. Ameris Bancorp has a twelve month low of $44.22 and a twelve month high of $74.56. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $64.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $63.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The stock has a market cap of $4.57 billion, a PE ratio of 12.69 and a beta of 1.06.

Ameris Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.21%. This is a boost from Ameris Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. Ameris Bancorp's payout ratio is 15.36%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ameris Bancorp

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ABCB. Picton Mahoney Asset Management boosted its position in Ameris Bancorp by 2,436.8% during the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 482 shares of the bank's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 463 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Ameris Bancorp by 249.5% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 713 shares of the bank's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 509 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 17.9% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,332 shares of the bank's stock worth $83,000 after buying an additional 202 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 167.5% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,431 shares of the bank's stock valued at $90,000 after buying an additional 896 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of the company's stock.

Ameris Bancorp Company Profile

Ameris Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for Ameris Bank that provides range of banking services to retail and commercial customers. It operates through five segments: Banking Division, Retail Mortgage Division, Warehouse Lending Division, SBA Division, and Premium Finance Division. The company offers commercial and retail checking, regular interest-bearing savings, money market, individual retirement, and certificates of deposit accounts.