Douglas D. Strange Buys 1,000 Shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Stock

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) insider Douglas D. Strange acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $56.95 per share, for a total transaction of $56,950.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 19,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,105,000.85. This trade represents a 5.43 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Up 3.5 %

Ameris Bancorp stock opened at $57.49 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.03 and a beta of 1.02. Ameris Bancorp has a 52 week low of $44.22 and a 52 week high of $74.56. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $63.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $64.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11.

Ameris Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.39%. This is an increase from Ameris Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ABCB has been the topic of a number of research reports. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $71.00 price objective (up from $67.00) on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $71.00 price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Ameris Bancorp from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $70.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ameris Bancorp

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Ameris Bancorp by 1.4% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 863,294 shares of the bank’s stock worth $53,861,000 after purchasing an additional 12,054 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 4.6% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,263,487 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $78,829,000 after purchasing an additional 55,473 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp increased its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 13.9% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 21,107 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,317,000 after acquiring an additional 2,575 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 135.5% during the third quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 115,194 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,187,000 after acquiring an additional 66,287 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 32.5% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 142,122 shares of the bank’s stock worth $8,867,000 after acquiring an additional 34,881 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

About Ameris Bancorp

Ameris Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for Ameris Bank that provides range of banking services to retail and commercial customers. It operates through five segments: Banking Division, Retail Mortgage Division, Warehouse Lending Division, SBA Division, and Premium Finance Division. The company offers commercial and retail checking, regular interest-bearing savings, money market, individual retirement, and certificates of deposit accounts.