Summit Creek Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB)

Summit Creek Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) by 0.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 241,512 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 831 shares during the period. Ameris Bancorp makes up 2.0% of Summit Creek Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Summit Creek Advisors LLC owned 0.35% of Ameris Bancorp worth $15,111,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ABCB. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 2.8% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 23,599 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,472,000 after buying an additional 646 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 5.0% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 62,566 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,903,000 after buying an additional 3,005 shares in the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 5.8% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 25,065 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,564,000 after buying an additional 1,364 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 152.3% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 15,599 shares of the bank’s stock worth $973,000 after buying an additional 9,417 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ameris Bancorp by 9.5% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 907,140 shares of the bank’s stock worth $56,596,000 after buying an additional 79,060 shares in the last quarter. 91.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ameris Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of ABCB opened at $57.69 on Monday. Ameris Bancorp has a 1-year low of $44.23 and a 1-year high of $74.56. The stock has a market cap of $3.98 billion, a PE ratio of 11.07 and a beta of 1.02. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $63.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $63.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

Ameris Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Ameris Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.36%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on ABCB shares. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $71.00 price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Ameris Bancorp from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ameris Bancorp

In related news, insider Douglas D. Strange purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $56.95 per share, for a total transaction of $56,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly 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 acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 5.50% of the company’s stock.

Ameris Bancorp Company 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.