Vanguard Group Inc. Has $527.92 Million Position in Ameris Bancorp $ABCB

Vanguard Group Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,201,151 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 163,059 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 10.50% of Ameris Bancorp worth $527,916,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 2,311.8% in the 2nd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 410 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 393 shares in the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new position in Ameris Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its position in Ameris Bancorp by 51.5% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 547 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in Ameris Bancorp by 1,567.6% in the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 567 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 533 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 48.8% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,076 shares of the bank’s stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 353 shares during the last quarter. 91.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Ameris Bancorp

Here are the key news stories impacting Ameris Bancorp this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst reception remains constructive — the stock has an average analyst rating of “Moderate Buy” and several recent price-target increases, supporting a positive medium-term view for ABCB. Ameris Bancorp Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts
• Neutral Sentiment: Ameris Bank announced executive leadership changes. Management reshuffles can cause short-term uncertainty while markets digest succession and role changes, but the release did not signal financial stress. Ameris Bank Announces Executive Leadership Changes
• Neutral Sentiment: Corporate Executive VP / Chief Strategy Officer retirement announced — a planned retirement can be neutral if succession is clear, but it may raise short-term questions about strategic continuity. Ameris Bancorp Announces Retirement of Chief Strategy Officer
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider transactions disclosed today include token single-share sales by Ross L. Creasy, CFO Nicole S. Stokes and Douglas D. Strange (each sold 1 share). These de minimis trades are routine and unlikely to signal a change in insider conviction. SEC filings: Ross Creasy Form 4 Nicole Stokes Form 4 Douglas Strange Form 4 (1 share)
• Neutral Sentiment: A prior insider sale disclosure (Douglas Strange sold 205 shares on Dec. 31) was also noted; the size is small relative to institutional holdings and the insider’s total stake. Douglas Strange Sells 205 Shares of Ameris Bancorp

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $80.00 price objective (up from $73.00) on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Truist Financial increased their target price on Ameris Bancorp from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. DA Davidson set a $94.00 target price on Ameris Bancorp in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $84.00 price target on Ameris Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $86.50.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Down 0.4%

NASDAQ ABCB opened at $79.38 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.24 and a beta of 0.99. Ameris Bancorp has a 52 week low of $48.27 and a 52 week high of $87.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.02. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $79.94 and a 200-day moving average of $75.86.

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

Ameris Bancorp Announces Dividend

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

About Ameris Bancorp

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.