Ameris Bancorp’s (ABCB) Outperform Rating Reiterated at Raymond James

Raymond James reaffirmed their outperform rating on shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) in a research report report published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $71.00 target price on the bank’s stock, up from their previous target price of $67.00.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on ABCB. Truist Financial dropped their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $73.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ameris Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $71.00 price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Friday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $70.50.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Performance

Ameris Bancorp stock opened at $64.44 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $64.97 and its 200 day moving average is $63.14. The company has a market capitalization of $4.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.37 and a beta of 1.06. 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.

Ameris Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $0.20 dividend. This is an increase from Ameris Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.36%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ameris Bancorp

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 249.5% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 713 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 509 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $51,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Ameris Bancorp by 38.0% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,130 shares of the bank’s stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas purchased a new position in Ameris Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth $98,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Ameris Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth $105,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

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.