Ameris Bancorp  today reported net income of $90.1 million, or $1.30 per diluted share, for the quarter ended June 30, 2022, compared with $88.3 million, or $1.27 per diluted share, for the quarter ended June 30, 2021. The Company reported adjusted net income of $81.5 million, or $1.18 per diluted share, for the quarter ended June 30, 2022, compared with $87.5 million, or $1.25 per diluted share, for the same period in 2021. Adjusted net income excludes after-tax merger and conversion charges, servicing right valuation adjustments, gain on bank owned life insurance ("BOLI") proceeds and gain/loss on sale of bank premises.

For the year-to-date period ending June 30, 2022, the Company reported net income of $171.8 million, or $2.47 per diluted share, compared with $213.3 million, or $3.06 per diluted share, for the same period in 2021.  The Company reported adjusted net income of $156.5 million, or $2.25 per diluted share, for the six months ended June 30, 2022, compared with $203.3 million, or $2.91 per diluted share, for the same period in 2021.  Adjusted net income for the year-to-date period excludes the same items listed above for the Company's quarter-to-date period. 

Commenting on the Company's results, Palmer Proctor, the Company's Chief Executive Officer, said, "Our strong second quarter financial results are attributable to our solid banking fundamentals. We grew revenue, improved our margin, expanded our earning asset base and grew tangible book value by $1.05 per share this quarter.   We are well positioned for future interest rate hikes, and we continue to monitor our loan growth and credit metrics very closely. Southeastern markets where we operate continue to provide opportunities for responsible growth.  We remain focused on our core fundamentals going into the third quarter."

Increase in Net Interest Income and Net Interest Margin
Net interest income on a tax-equivalent basis (TE) increased to $192.3 million in the second quarter of 2022, an increase of $18.8 million, or 10.8%, from last quarter and an increase of $29.3 million, or 18.0%, compared to the second quarter of 2021.  Interest income on a tax-equivalent basis increased by $19.2 million, or 10.4%, in the current quarter while interest expense increased only $374,000, or 3.5%, compared to the first quarter of 2022.  

The Company's net interest margin improved significantly to 3.66% for the second quarter of 2022, up from 3.35% reported for the first quarter of 2022 and 3.34% reported for the second quarter of 2021.  While average earning assets remained consistent at $21.1 billion from the previous quarter, the mix of earning assets expanded the margin as the Company began to deploy excess liquidity through the investment portfolio and organic loan growth. 

Yields on earning assets increased 32 basis points during the quarter to 3.88%, compared with 3.56% in the first quarter of 2022, and increased 30 basis points from 3.58% in the second quarter of 2021.  Yields on loans decreased to 4.32% during the second quarter of 2022, compared with 4.37% for the first quarter of 2022 and 4.33% for the second quarter of 2021. Loan yields in the second quarter of 2022 were negatively impacted approximately four basis points by declines in fee income on Paycheck Protection Program ("PPP") loans compared with the first quarter of 2022. In addition, the Company incurred net accretion expense in the second quarter of $379,000, compared with accretion income of $1.0 million in the first quarter of 2022 and $4.5 million for the second quarter of 2021.

Loan production in the banking division during the second quarter of 2022 was $1.07 billion, with weighted average yields of 5.24%, compared with $805.5 million and 5.17%, respectively, in the first quarter of 2022 and $911.3 million and 3.75%, respectively, in the second quarter of 2021.  Loan production in the lines of business (including retail mortgage, warehouse lending, SBA and premium finance) amounted to an additional $5.3 billion during the second quarter of 2022, with weighted average yields of 4.29%, compared with $4.7 billion and 3.63%, respectively, during the first quarter of 2022 and $6.4 billion and 3.36%, respectively, during the second quarter of 2021.   

The Company's total cost of funds was unchanged at 0.22% in the second quarter of 2022 as compared with the first quarter of 2022.  Deposit costs increased just one basis point during the second quarter of 2022 to 0.10%, compared with 0.09% in the first quarter of 2022.  Costs of interest-bearing deposits increased during the quarter from 0.14% in the first quarter of 2022 to 0.17% in the second quarter of 2022.