Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) Declares $0.15 Quarterly Dividend

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, June 6th, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Sunday, June 30th will be given a dividend of 0.15 per share by the bank on Monday, July 8th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th.

Ameris Bancorp has a dividend payout ratio of 12.3% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Ameris Bancorp to earn $4.89 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 12.3%.

Ameris Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ ABCB traded up $0.26 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $48.24. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 20,287 shares, compared to its average volume of 346,996. Ameris Bancorp has a 12 month low of $33.21 and a 12 month high of $53.99. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $48.22 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $48.57. The company has a market cap of $3.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.67 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

Ameris Bancorp (NASDAQ:ABCB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The bank reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.06. Ameris Bancorp had a return on equity of 8.62% and a net margin of 18.06%. The company had revenue of $267.27 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $258.05 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.86 EPS. Ameris Bancorp’s revenue for the quarter was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Ameris Bancorp will post 4.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Ameris Bancorp from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Truist Financial cut their price target on Ameris Bancorp from $60.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 1st. StockNews.com upgraded Ameris Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Finally, Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $53.00 price target on shares of Ameris Bancorp in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.