Gabelli Funds LLC Has $1.17 Million Position in Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB)

Gabelli Funds LLC reduced its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) by 3.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 24,200 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 800 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC’s holdings in Ameris Bancorp were worth $1,171,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ABCB. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,787,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 50.4% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 845,390 shares of the bank’s stock worth $44,848,000 after purchasing an additional 283,138 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 4,193.6% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 229,408 shares of the bank’s stock worth $12,163,000 after purchasing an additional 224,065 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,193,610 shares of the bank’s stock worth $222,473,000 after purchasing an additional 205,750 shares during the period. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance raised its position in Ameris Bancorp by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 2,514,293 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $133,383,000 after acquiring an additional 201,644 shares in the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ABCB traded up $0.83 during trading on Friday, reaching $61.71. The stock had a trading volume of 486,659 shares, compared to its average volume of 451,164. Ameris Bancorp has a 52 week low of $34.26 and a 52 week high of $63.80. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $50.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $49.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.71 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The bank reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.03. Ameris Bancorp had a net margin of 19.28% and a return on equity of 9.07%. The business had revenue of $436.03 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $273.67 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.91 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ameris Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 8th. Investors of record on Sunday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 28th. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ABCB. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. StockNews.com raised shares of Ameris Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $60.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $53.00 price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $52.00.

Ameris Bancorp 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.