Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Raised to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Free Report) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Thursday.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on ABCB. Raymond James raised shares of Ameris Bancorp from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $67.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Truist Financial decreased 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 note on Monday. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $61.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ameris Bancorp currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $66.67.

Ameris Bancorp Trading Down 1.6 %

NASDAQ ABCB traded down $1.02 during trading on Thursday, hitting $61.99. The stock had a trading volume of 323,454 shares, compared to its average volume of 359,972. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.91 and a beta of 1.01. Ameris Bancorp has a one year low of $36.81 and a one year high of $66.51. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $61.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $55.11.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $424.86 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $290.60 million. Ameris Bancorp had a net margin of 19.28% and a return on equity of 8.97%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.16 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Ameris Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. Ameris Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.50%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ameris Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ABCB. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 130.7% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,169 shares of the bank's stock worth $589,000 after purchasing an additional 6,895 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 75.0% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 416,557 shares of the bank's stock worth $20,153,000 after purchasing an additional 178,500 shares during the last quarter. Norden Group LLC purchased a new position in Ameris Bancorp in the first quarter worth $278,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 181.3% in the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 52,029 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,517,000 after purchasing an additional 33,531 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 4.2% during the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 87,499 shares of the bank's stock valued at $4,258,000 after buying an additional 3,560 shares during the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.