Teacher Retirement System of Texas Grows Position in Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its holdings in Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) by 23.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 57,504 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 10,796 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in Ameris Bancorp were worth $3,598,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,880 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $243,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 17.9% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,332 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $83,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its position in Ameris Bancorp by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 5,174 shares of the bank’s stock worth $324,000 after buying an additional 238 shares in the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC boosted its stake in Ameris Bancorp by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 7,371 shares of the bank’s stock worth $461,000 after buying an additional 267 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atria Investments Inc grew its holdings in Ameris Bancorp by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 9,124 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $571,000 after buying an additional 298 shares in the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on ABCB shares. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $71.00 price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $71.00 target price (up from $67.00) on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target 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 assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.50.

Insider Transactions at Ameris Bancorp

In other news, insider Douglas D. Strange bought 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $56.95 per share, with a total value of $56,950.00. Following 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 5.50% of the company’s stock.

Ameris Bancorp Price Performance

Ameris Bancorp stock opened at $59.41 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $63.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $63.97. 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 has a 1 year low of $44.23 and a 1 year high of $74.56. The company has a market capitalization of $4.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.40 and a beta of 1.02.

Ameris Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.36%.

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.