Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Given "Equal Weight" Rating at Stephens

Stephens reiterated their equal weight rating on shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Free Report) in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $71.00 price target on the bank's stock.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $73.00 to $68.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Raymond James upgraded shares of Ameris Bancorp from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $67.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 28th. StockNews.com upgraded Ameris Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Ameris Bancorp from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $70.50.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ABCB traded up $2.57 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $66.80. The company had a trading volume of 481,610 shares, compared to its average volume of 418,295. The stock has a market cap of $4.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.82 and a beta of 1.06. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $64.97 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $63.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.00. Ameris Bancorp has a 12 month low of $44.22 and a 12 month high of $74.56.

Ameris Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This is a boost from Ameris Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.20%. Ameris Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.36%.

Insider Activity

In other Ameris Bancorp news, Director Robert Dale Ezzell sold 8,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.91, for a total value of $559,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 27,444 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,918,610.04. This represents a 22.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 5.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Ameris Bancorp

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ABCB. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 35,689 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,233,000 after buying an additional 628 shares in the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth $496,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth $105,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 13.6% during the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 3,819 shares of the bank's stock worth $250,000 after purchasing an additional 457 shares during the period. Finally, Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 821,554 shares of the bank's stock valued at $51,405,000 after purchasing an additional 12,216 shares during the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Ameris Bancorp

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.