Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.06 EPS

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The bank reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.66 by ($0.06), Briefing.com reports. Ameris Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.57% and a net margin of 21.46%.During the same period last year, the business earned $1.59 EPS.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of ABCB stock traded down $0.84 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $89.03. 742,850 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 533,767. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.09 and a beta of 0.91. Ameris Bancorp has a one year low of $64.64 and a one year high of $93.22. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $87.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $83.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.02.

Ameris Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 12.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of Ameris Bancorp from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Ameris Bancorp to an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $89.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Ameris Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $96.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Sunday, July 12th. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price objective 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. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $92.67.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 9.5% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 29,288 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,687,000 after purchasing an additional 2,546 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 39,181 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,256,000 after buying an additional 1,703 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 36.7% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 11,651 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $671,000 after buying an additional 3,129 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association bought a new stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at about $243,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 7.9% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 187,024 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $10,767,000 after buying an additional 13,633 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.60% of the company’s stock.

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.