Congress Asset Management Co. Acquires 12,216 Shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB)

Congress Asset Management Co. raised its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Free Report) by 1.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 821,554 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 12,216 shares during the quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. owned 1.19% of Ameris Bancorp worth $51,405,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABCB. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 249.5% during 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 in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $51,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 17.9% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,332 shares of the bank's stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $98,000. Finally, US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 3,396.4% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,923 shares of the bank's stock worth $120,000 after acquiring an additional 1,868 shares in the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ABCB has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Raymond James reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $71.00 target price (up from $67.00) on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Ameris Bancorp from $73.00 to $68.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 28th. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $71.00 target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com raised Ameris Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Ameris Bancorp from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ameris Bancorp has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $70.50.

Ameris Bancorp Trading Down 0.9 %

NASDAQ:ABCB traded down $0.59 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $65.91. 271,190 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 390,718. The company's 50 day moving average is $64.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $63.70. Ameris Bancorp has a twelve month low of $44.22 and a twelve month high of $74.56. 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 company has a market capitalization of $4.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.65 and a beta of 1.06.

Ameris Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 is a boost from Ameris Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.21%. Ameris Bancorp's payout ratio is presently 15.36%.

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.