Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Increases Stock Holdings in Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) by 16.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 15,398 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,210 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Ameris Bancorp were worth $817,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 11.1% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 4,565 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $175,000 after purchasing an additional 456 shares in the last quarter. KLR Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ameris Bancorp in the third quarter worth $209,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $218,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Ameris Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth about $219,000. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. acquired a new stake in Ameris Bancorp in the 3rd quarter valued at about $223,000. 91.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jon S. Edwards sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.35, for a total transaction of $355,125.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 59,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,826,368.85. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 5.60% of the company’s stock.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of Ameris Bancorp stock opened at $48.50 on Tuesday. 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 has a 52 week low of $28.33 and a 52 week high of $53.99. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $46.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $46.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.80 and a beta of 1.05.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The bank reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.06. Ameris Bancorp had a net margin of 18.06% and a return on equity of 8.62%. The firm had revenue of $267.27 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $258.05 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.86 EPS. The company’s revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ameris Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 8th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on ABCB shares. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research report on Monday, January 15th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $53.00 price objective on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a report on Friday. StockNews.com raised shares of Ameris Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their target price on Ameris Bancorp from $60.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $52.00.

About Ameris Bancorp

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.