Swiss National Bank Sells 16,900 Shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB)

Swiss National Bank decreased its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) by 10.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 142,244 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 16,900 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned about 0.21% of Ameris Bancorp worth $5,203,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE increased its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 20.7% in the first quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 91,042 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,330,000 after purchasing an additional 15,642 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co. MA increased its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 27.1% in the first quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA now owns 475,604 shares of the bank’s stock worth $17,398,000 after purchasing an additional 101,264 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth $6,308,000. Davis Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth $18,856,000. Finally, Peregrine Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 7.1% in the first quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC now owns 246,569 shares of the bank’s stock worth $9,019,000 after purchasing an additional 16,250 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.98% of the company’s stock.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ ABCB opened at $40.06 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $37.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. Ameris Bancorp has a 12-month low of $28.33 and a 12-month high of $54.24. The firm has a market cap of $2.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.32 and a beta of 1.15.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 28th. The bank reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.12 by ($0.21). Ameris Bancorp had a net margin of 21.86% and a return on equity of 9.19%. The business had revenue of $276.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $262.45 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.18 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.11 EPS for the current year.

Ameris Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 29th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.50%. Ameris Bancorp’s payout ratio is 13.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “sell” rating on the stock. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Ameris Bancorp from $42.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 31st. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on Ameris Bancorp from $38.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ameris Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $48.25.

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 primarily in Georgia, Alabama, Florida, North Carolina, and South Carolina. It operates through five segments: Banking Division, Retail Mortgage Division, Warehouse Lending Division, SBA Division, and Premium Finance Division.