AlphaQuest LLC Boosts Stake in Ameris Bancorp $ABCB

AlphaQuest LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) by 346.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 65,672 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 50,953 shares during the period. Ameris Bancorp makes up 0.3% of AlphaQuest LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. AlphaQuest LLC owned about 0.10% of Ameris Bancorp worth $4,814,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 1.2% during the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 19,372 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,420,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp purchased a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at about $203,000. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC lifted its position in Ameris Bancorp by 19.7% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 13,505 shares of the bank’s stock worth $990,000 after buying an additional 2,220 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 3.0% in the third quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 5,231 shares of the bank’s stock worth $384,000 after buying an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its position in Ameris Bancorp by 51.5% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 547 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.60% of the company’s stock.

Ameris Bancorp Trading Up 2.0%

ABCB opened at $81.29 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.60 and a beta of 0.99. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $77.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $73.73. Ameris Bancorp has a one year low of $48.27 and a one year high of $83.64.

Ameris Bancorp announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Monday, October 20th that permits the company to buyback $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the bank to purchase up to 4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Ameris Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ABCB shares. Piper Sandler set a $84.00 price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $80.00 price target (up from $73.00) on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Ameris Bancorp from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Truist Financial set a $83.00 price objective on Ameris Bancorp in a report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, DA Davidson began coverage on Ameris Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $87.00 target price for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $79.83.

Ameris Bancorp Profile

Ameris Bancorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Through its principal subsidiary, Ameris Bank, the company offers a broad range of commercial and retail banking services to individuals, small businesses, middle market companies and agricultural customers. Its core business lines encompass deposit services, lending solutions, treasury management, mortgage origination and servicing, insurance products and wealth management.

Ameris Bancorp operates a network of branches and loan production offices across the southeastern United States, including Georgia, Alabama, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.