HighTower Advisors LLC Purchases Shares of 8,815 Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB)

HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 8,815 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $552,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Ameris Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 56.1% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,113 shares of the bank's stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 17.9% during 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. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 167.5% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,431 shares of the bank's stock worth $90,000 after acquiring an additional 896 shares during the period. Finally, USA Financial Formulas purchased a new position in Ameris Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $98,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of the company's stock.

Ameris Bancorp Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of Ameris Bancorp stock traded up $0.89 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $57.89. 415,841 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 372,727. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.11 and a beta of 1.02. Ameris Bancorp has a twelve month low of $44.23 and a twelve month high of $74.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $62.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $63.86.

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Ameris Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.38%. Ameris Bancorp's payout ratio is currently 15.36%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ameris Bancorp news, insider Douglas D. Strange purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $56.95 per share, for a total transaction of $56,950.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 19,403 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,105,000.85. This represents a 5.43 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 5.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on ABCB. Raymond James reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $71.00 target price (up previously from $67.00) on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Stephens restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $71.00 target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $70.50.

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.