Bessemer Group Inc. Raises Stock Position in Ameris Bancorp $ABCB

Bessemer Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) by 37.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 481,984 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 130,318 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. owned approximately 0.71% of Ameris Bancorp worth $35,797,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sound Income Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 51.5% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 547 shares of the bank’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the third quarter worth $45,000. Danske Bank A S purchased a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the third quarter worth $51,000. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 395.4% during the third quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 748 shares of the bank’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 597 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ABCB has been the subject of several recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Stephens raised their target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $92.00 target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $90.17.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Down 1.5%

ABCB stock opened at $82.44 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $5.55 billion, a PE ratio of 15.82 and a beta of 0.93. 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’s fifty day moving average is $80.65 and its 200 day moving average is $78.80. Ameris Bancorp has a one year low of $59.54 and a one year high of $87.99.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $314.36 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $309.58 million. Ameris Bancorp had a net margin of 21.46% and a return on equity of 9.57%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.28 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Ameris Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.58%.

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.