Ameris Bancorp (NYSE: ABCB) (the “Company” or “Ameris”) today reported net income of $110.5 million, or $1.63 per diluted share, for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, compared with $87.9 million, or $1.27 per diluted share, for the quarter ended March 31, 2025.

Commenting on the Company’s results, Palmer Proctor, the Company’s Chief Executive Officer, said, “First quarter was a strong start to the year with our performance metrics continuing to outpace the broader industry. Our ROA expanded to 1.62%, our return on average tangible common equity grew to 14.75% and our margin expanded 3 basis points to 3.88% for the first quarter. The continued focus on expenses across the Company resulted in an efficiency ratio just under 50% despite some seasonal headwinds. Growth was robust with annualized revenue growth in the high single digits and annualized loan and deposit growth in the mid-single digits. We were more active in our share repurchase program, buying back almost $75 million of our common stock in the quarter or approximately 1.4% of our outstanding equity. Overall, another solid quarter from Ameris with our focus remaining on profitably growing our franchise across our attractive Southeast markets.”

Net Interest Income and Net Interest Margin

Net interest income on a tax-equivalent basis (TE) was $245.4 million in the first quarter of 2026, a decrease of $903,000, or 0.4%, from last quarter and an increase of $22.6 million, or 10.2%, compared with the first quarter of 2025. The Company's average earning assets increased during the quarter by $265.2 million, or 4.2% annualized, primarily due to an increase of $311.9 million in average portfolio loans outstanding and an increase of $99.7 million in the average balance of investment securities, partially offset by a decrease in average loans held for sale of $142.1 million.

The Company's net interest margin expanded to 3.88% for the first quarter of 2026, a three-basis point increase from 3.85% reported for the fourth quarter of 2025 and a 15-basis point improvement from the 3.73% reported for the first quarter of 2025.

Yields on earning assets decreased four basis points during the quarter to 5.57%, compared with 5.61% in the fourth quarter of 2025. This decrease is primarily related to a two-basis point decrease in yield on portfolio loans outstanding during the first quarter of 2026.

The Company’s total cost of funds decreased seven basis points to 1.88% in the first quarter of 2026, compared with 1.95% in the fourth quarter of 2025, and improved 18 basis points compared with the first quarter of 2025. Deposit costs decreased 11 basis points during the first quarter of 2026 to 1.76%, compared with 1.87% in the fourth quarter of 2025. Costs of interest-bearing deposits during the quarter were 2.50%, a decrease of 16 basis points compared with the fourth quarter of 2025.

Noninterest Income

Noninterest income increased $8.1 million, or 13.1%, in the first quarter of 2026 to $69.9 million, compared with $61.8 million for the fourth quarter of 2025. Mortgage banking activity increased $5.1 million, or 16.1%, to $37.0 million in the first quarter of 2026, compared with $31.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2025. Total production in the retail mortgage division seasonally decreased $128.4 million, or 10.6%, to $1.09 billion in the first quarter of 2026, compared with $1.22 billion for the fourth quarter of 2025. The retail mortgage open pipeline was $632.7 million at the end of the first quarter of 2026, compared with $701.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2025. Gain on sale spreads decreased to 2.08% in the first quarter of 2026 from 2.20% for the fourth quarter of 2025. Other noninterest income increased $2.8 million, or 44.4%, in the first quarter of 2026 to $9.1 million, compared with $6.3 million for the fourth quarter of 2025. This increase is primarily due to a $1.1 million loss on the sale of mortgage servicing rights and a $910,000 servicing right impairment in the fourth quarter of 2025, both of which did not recur in the current quarter, and an $837,000 increase in gain on sale of SBA loans in the first quarter of 2026 compared with the fourth quarter of 2025.

Noninterest Expense

Noninterest expense increased $14.0 million, or 9.8%, to $157.1 million during the first quarter of 2026, compared with $143.1 million for the fourth quarter of 2025. The increase was primarily driven by cyclical increases in payroll tax and 401(k) expenses totaling $4.9 million, an increase in incentives of $4.3 million, an increase in advertising and marketing expenses of $1.3 million, an increase of $1.1 million in FDIC assessment expense and an increase in donations of $1.0 million. Management continues to deliver high performing operating efficiency, with an efficiency ratio of 49.97% in the first quarter of 2026, compared with 46.59% in the fourth quarter of 2025 and 52.83% in the first quarter of 2025.

Income Tax Expense

The Company's effective tax rate for the first quarter of 2026 was 21.5%, compared with 23.2% for the fourth quarter of 2025. The decreased rate resulted primarily from the excess benefit of share-based compensation awards that vested during the first quarter of 2026.

Balance Sheet Trends

Total assets at March 31, 2026 were $28.11 billion, compared with $27.52 billion at December 31, 2025. During the first quarter of 2026, loans, net of unearned income, increased by $314.5 million, or 5.9% annualized, compared with $21.51 billion at December 31, 2025. Unfunded commitments increased $298.7 million during the first quarter of 2026, due to strong production in construction and warehouse lending during the quarter. Loans held for sale decreased to $496.6 million at March 31, 2026 from $623.2 million at December 31, 2025. Debt securities available-for-sale amounted to $2.35 billion, compared with $2.21 billion at December 31, 2025.

At March 31, 2026, total deposits amounted to $22.64 billion, compared with $22.38 billion at December 31, 2025. During the first quarter of 2026, deposits grew $260.7 million, with noninterest-bearing accounts increasing $322.8 million, interest-bearing demand accounts increasing $168.1 million, brokered CDs increasing $143.9 million and savings accounts increasing $9.0 million. Such increases were offset by decreases in money market accounts of $330.5 million and retail CDs of $52.7 million. Noninterest-bearing accounts as a percentage of total deposits increased, such that at March 31, 2026, noninterest-bearing deposit accounts represented $6.75 billion, or 29.8% of total deposits, compared with $6.43 billion, or 28.7% of total deposits, at December 31, 2025.

Shareholders’ equity at March 31, 2026 totaled $4.08 billion, an increase of $6.1 million, or 0.1%, from December 31, 2025. The increase in shareholders’ equity was primarily the result of earnings of $110.5 million during the first quarter of 2026, largely offset by dividends declared, share repurchases and a decrease in accumulated other comprehensive income of $9.8 million resulting from changes in interest rates on the Company's investment portfolio. Tangible book value per share⁽¹⁾ increased $0.61 per share, or 5.6% annualized, during the first quarter of 2026 to $44.79 at March 31, 2026. Tangible common equity as a percentage of tangible assets was 11.15% at March 31, 2026, compared with 11.37% at the end of 2025. The Company repurchased 950,400 shares of its common stock in the quarter ending March 31, 2026.

Credit Quality

During the first quarter of 2026, the Company recorded a provision for credit losses of $16.6 million, compared with a provision of $23.0 million in the fourth quarter of 2025. The allowance for credit losses on loans was 1.62% of loans at March 31, 2026, unchanged from the end of 2025. Nonperforming assets as a percentage of total assets increased one basis point to 0.45% during the quarter. Approximately $34.5 million, or 27.0%, of the nonperforming assets at March 31, 2026 were GNMA-guaranteed mortgage loans, which present minimal loss exposure for the Company. Excluding these government-guaranteed loans, nonperforming assets as a percentage of total assets decreased two basis points to 0.33% at March 31, 2026, compared with 0.35% at the end of the fourth quarter of 2025. The net charge-off ratio was 21 basis points for the first quarter of 2026, compared with 26 basis points for the fourth quarter of 2025.

Conference Call

The Company will host a teleconference at 9:00 a.m. Eastern time on Friday, April 24, 2026, to discuss the Company's results and answer appropriate questions. The conference call can be accessed by dialing 1-844-481-2939. The conference call ID is Ameris Bancorp. A replay of the call will be available beginning one hour after the end of the conference call until May 1, 2026. To listen to the replay, dial 1-855-669-9658. The conference replay access code is 4888731. The financial information discussed will be available on the Investor Relations page of the Ameris Bank website at ir.amerisbank.com. Participants also may listen to a live webcast of the presentation by visiting the link on the Investor Relations page of the Ameris Bank website.