Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Given New $86.00 Price Target at Truist Financial

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) had its price target upped by Truist Financial from $83.00 to $86.00 in a research note published on Monday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has a hold rating on the bank’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on ABCB. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $80.00 target price (up from $73.00) on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Friday. Piper Sandler set a $84.00 target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.50.

Ameris Bancorp Price Performance

ABCB stock opened at $79.92 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The firm has a market cap of $5.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.34 and a beta of 0.99. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $77.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $74.01. Ameris Bancorp has a 12-month low of $48.27 and a 12-month high of $83.64.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The bank reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $309.92 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $310.48 million. Ameris Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.57% and a net margin of 21.46%.During the same period last year, the business posted $1.38 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Ameris Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.33%.

Ameris Bancorp declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, October 20th that allows the company to buyback $200.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the bank to repurchase up to 4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ameris Bancorp

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABCB. Truist Financial Corp boosted its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 14.1% during the 4th quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 3,161 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $235,000 after purchasing an additional 391 shares during the last quarter. Strs Ohio raised its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 631.4% in the fourth quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 100,200 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,442,000 after purchasing an additional 86,500 shares during the last quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP bought a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,667,000. Horizon Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 34,960 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,596,000 after buying an additional 479 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 31.3% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,741,214 shares of the bank’s stock worth $129,320,000 after buying an additional 414,920 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.60% of the company’s stock.

Ameris Bancorp Company 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.