William Blair Investment Management LLC Raises Stake in Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB)

William Blair Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 789,271 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 19,150 shares during the quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC owned approximately 1.14% of Ameris Bancorp worth $49,385,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ABCB. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp in the third quarter worth $232,000. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 2.8% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 23,599 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,472,000 after buying an additional 646 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 5.0% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 62,566 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,903,000 after buying an additional 3,005 shares in the last quarter. LMR Partners LLP purchased a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp in the third quarter worth $311,000. Finally, Pathstone Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 5.8% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 25,065 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,564,000 after buying an additional 1,364 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Ameris Bancorp

In other Ameris Bancorp news, insider Douglas D. Strange acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $56.95 per share, with a total value of $56,950.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 19,403 shares in the company, valued at $1,105,000.85. The trade was a 5.43 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 5.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on ABCB shares. 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target 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. 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, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.50.

Ameris Bancorp Trading Up 0.9 %

ABCB stock opened at $57.87 on Tuesday. 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 twelve month low of $44.23 and a twelve month high of $74.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.11 and a beta of 1.02. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $63.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $64.08.

Ameris Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This is a boost from Ameris Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.38%. 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.