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

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) insider Douglas D. Strange bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $56.95 per share, with a total value of $56,950.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 19,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,105,000.85. The trade was a 5.43 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Ameris Bancorp Trading Up 3.5 %

Shares of ABCB stock opened at $57.49 on Friday. Ameris Bancorp has a 52-week low of $44.22 and a 52-week high of $74.56. The stock has a market cap of $3.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.03 and a beta of 1.02. 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 firm has a fifty day moving average of $63.46 and a 200-day moving average of $64.08.

Ameris Bancorp Increases Dividend

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ameris Bancorp

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ABCB. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth about $48,380,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 30.7% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 952,058 shares of the bank’s stock worth $59,570,000 after purchasing an additional 223,805 shares in the last quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 8.9% during the 4th quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP now owns 2,533,000 shares of the bank’s stock worth $158,490,000 after purchasing an additional 208,000 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth about $10,856,000. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 150.3% during the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 288,300 shares of the bank’s stock worth $18,039,000 after purchasing an additional 173,106 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.64% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $71.00 target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $71.00 price objective (up previously from $67.00) on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $70.50.

Ameris Bancorp Company Profile

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.