Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Price Target Raised to $88.00

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) had its price objective boosted by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $82.00 to $88.00 in a research report report published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has an outperform rating on the bank’s stock.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Ameris Bancorp from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $80.00 price target (up previously from $73.00) on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $79.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. Piper Sandler set a $84.00 target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, DA Davidson set a $94.00 price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Monday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.50.

Ameris Bancorp Trading Up 1.3%

ABCB stock opened at $84.02 on Monday. Ameris Bancorp has a 12 month low of $48.27 and a 12 month high of $85.40. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $78.10 and its 200 day moving average is $74.19. The company has a market capitalization of $5.74 billion, a PE ratio of 16.13 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

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

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

Ameris Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.33%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its position in Ameris Bancorp by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 14,639 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,087,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 203,614 shares of the bank’s stock worth $15,122,000 after purchasing an additional 7,050 shares in the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 81.4% during the 4th quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 5,735 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $426,000 after purchasing an additional 2,574 shares during the last quarter. Ethic Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 54.7% in the 4th quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 5,761 shares of the bank’s stock worth $428,000 after purchasing an additional 2,038 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 45.7% during the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,046 shares of the bank’s stock worth $375,000 after buying an additional 1,583 shares during 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.