Loomis Sayles & Co. L P Cuts Stock Position in Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB)

Loomis Sayles & Co. L P reduced its position in Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Free Report) by 4.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 278,648 shares of the bank's stock after selling 13,731 shares during the period. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P owned 0.40% of Ameris Bancorp worth $17,435,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of ABCB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 30.7% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 952,058 shares of the bank's stock worth $59,570,000 after buying an additional 223,805 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth $10,856,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 9.5% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 907,140 shares of the bank's stock valued at $56,596,000 after buying an additional 79,060 shares during the period. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 107.7% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 140,001 shares of the bank's stock valued at $8,735,000 after acquiring an additional 72,599 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 135.5% during the third quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 115,194 shares of the bank's stock worth $7,187,000 after purchasing an additional 66,287 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on ABCB. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $71.00 target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Ameris Bancorp from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Raymond James reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $71.00 target price (up previously from $67.00) on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $70.50.

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Insider Activity at Ameris Bancorp

In related news, insider Douglas D. Strange purchased 1,000 shares of Ameris Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $56.95 per share, with a total value of $56,950.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 19,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,105,000.85. The trade was a 5.43 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 5.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ABCB traded up $0.33 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $57.33. 83,975 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 423,880. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $62.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $63.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. Ameris Bancorp has a one year low of $44.22 and a one year high of $74.56. The firm has a market cap of $3.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.00 and a beta of 1.02.

Ameris Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Ameris Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is presently 15.36%.

Ameris Bancorp 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.