8-K

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT

PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE

SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

Date of report (Date of earliest event reported):   January 20, 2017

Ameris Bancorp

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)

Georgia	001-13901	58-1456434
(State or Other	(Commission File Number)	(IRS Employer
Jurisdiction of		Identification No.)
Incorporation)

310 First Street, S.E., Moultrie, Georgia	31768
(Address of Principal Executive Offices)	(Zip Code)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code:   (229) 890-1111

(Former Name or Former Address, if Changed Since Last Report)

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):

¨ Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

¨ Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

¨ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

¨ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

The information contained in this Current Report on Form 8-K (this “Report”), including Exhibits 99.1 and 99.2 attached hereto, is being furnished and shall not be deemed filed for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or otherwise subject to the liabilities of such section. Furthermore, the information contained in this Report shall not be deemed to be incorporated by reference into any registration statement or other document filed pursuant to the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

Item 2.02 Results of Operations and Financial Condition.

On January 20, 2017, Ameris Bancorp (the “Company”) issued a press release announcing its unaudited financial results for the quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2016. A copy of that press release is attached to this Report as Exhibit 99.1.

Item 7.01 Regulation FD Disclosure.

A copy of the slide presentation that the Company will present during the earnings teleconference beginning at 11:00 a.m. Eastern time on January 20, 2017 is attached to this Report as Exhibit 99.2. The slide presentation is also available on the Company’s website, www.amerisbank.com, under the Investor Relations section.

Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(d) Exhibits.

99.1	Press release dated January 20, 2017.
99.2	Slide Presentation dated January 20, 2017.

SIGNATURE

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, hereunto duly authorized.

AMERIS BANCORP
By:	/s/ Dennis J. Zember Jr.
	Dennis J. Zember Jr.
	Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer

Date: January 20, 2017

EXHIBIT INDEX

Exhibit No.	Exhibit
99.1	Press release dated January 20, 2017
99.2	Slide Presentation dated January 20, 2017

EX-99.1

Exhibit 99.1

Ameris Bancorp Announces 2016 Financial Results

MOULTRIE, Ga., Jan. 20, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Ameris Bancorp (Nasdaq: ABCB) (the "Company") today reported net income of $72.1 million, or $2.08 per share, for the year ended December 31, 2016, compared with $40.8 million, or $1.27 per share, for 2015. For the quarter ending December 31, 2016, reported results include net income of $18.2 million, or $0.52 per diluted share, compared with $14.1 million, or $0.43 per diluted share, for the same period in 2015.

The Company reported adjusted operating net income of $80.0 million, or $2.30 per share, for the year ended December 31, 2016, compared with $53.3 million, or $1.66 per share, for 2015. Adjusted operating net income for the fourth quarter of 2016 increased 43% to $21.9 million, or $0.62 per share, compared with $15.3 million, or $0.47 per share, for the same quarter of 2015.

For the year ended December 31, 2016, the Company's adjusted operating return on average assets improved to 1.30%, compared with 1.11% for 2015. For the fourth quarter of 2016, the Company's adjusted operating return on average assets improved to 1.33%, compared with 1.12% in the same quarter of 2015. Commenting on the Company's earnings, Edwin W. Hortman, Jr., President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, said, "In 2016, we delivered a 39% increase in adjusted operating earnings per share by driving strong growth in revenue and managing operating expenses. We grew organic loans by approximately 21% in 2016, up significantly from the 13% that we experienced during 2015. For 2017, we are focused on maintaining this pace of organic growth while also maintaining a level of operating results that puts us in the top quartile of our peer group."

Following is a summary of the adjustments between reported net income and adjusted operating net income:

	Three Months Ended		Twelve Months Ended
Adjusted Operating Net Income Reconciliation	Dec 16	Dec 15	Dec 16	Dec 15
Net income available to common shareholders	$       18,177	$       14,148	$       72,100	$       40,847
Merger and conversion charges	17	1,807	6,376	7,980
Certain credit resolution related expenses	-	-	-	11,241
Certain compliance resolution expenses	5,750	-	5,750	-
Tax effect of management-adjusted charges	(2,018)	(632)	(4,244)	(6,727)
Plus: After tax management-adjusted charges	3,749	1,175	7,882	12,494
Adjusted Operating Net income	$       21,926	$       15,323	$       79,982	$       53,341
Reported Return on average assets	1.10%	1.03%	1.17%	0.85%
Adjusted Operating Return on average assets	1.33%	1.12%	1.30%	1.11%

Highlights of the Company's results for 2016 include the following:

• Adjusted operating return on average assets of 1.30%, compared with 1.11% in 2015
• Adjusted operating return on average tangible common equity of 16.71%, compared with 13.66% in 2015
• Improvement in adjusted operating efficiency ratio to 62.7%, compared with 68.9% for 2015
• Organic growth in loans of $660.4 million, or 20.8%
• Total growth in non-interest bearing demand deposits of $243.5 million, or 18.3%, to end the year at 28.2% of total deposits
• Increase in total revenue of 24.5% to $325.2 million
• Decline in the growth rate of operating expenses (less one-time oriented charges)
• Decline in annualized net charge-offs to 0.03% of total loans and 0.11% of non-purchased loans
• Increase in tangible book value per share of 14.0% to $14.42, compared with $12.65 per share at December 31, 2015
• Continued improvement in non-performing assets, decreasing to 0.85% of total assets
• Increase in net income from retail mortgage, warehouse lending and SBA lines of business of 35.7% to $20.6 million, compared with $15.2 million in 2015

Increase in Net Interest Income
Net interest income on a tax-equivalent basis increased 25.6% in 2016 to $223.6 million, up from $178.1 million for 2015. Growth in earning assets from internal sources, as well as from acquisition activity, contributed to the increase. Average earning assets increased 29.6% in 2016 to $5.60 billion, compared with $4.32 billion for 2015. Although the Company's net interest income increased, net interest margin for 2016, including accretion, declined to 3.99%, compared with 4.12% for 2015. The Company's net interest margin was 3.95% for the fourth quarter of 2016, down from 3.99% reported for the third quarter of 2016 and 3.98% reported for the fourth quarter of 2015.

Accretion income for 2016 increased to $14.1 million, compared with $11.7 million for 2015. Accretion income for the fourth quarter of 2016 decreased slightly to $3.4 million, compared with $3.6 million for the third quarter of 2016, but increased from $2.9 million reported for the fourth quarter of 2015. Excluding the effect of accretion, the Company's margin for 2016 was 3.74%, compared with 3.85% for 2015. Excluding the effect of accretion, the Company's margin for the fourth quarter of 2016 was 3.73%, a slight decline compared with 3.75% for the third quarter of 2016 and 3.74% for the fourth quarter of 2015.

Yields on earning assets in 2016 were 4.35%, compared with 4.47% in 2015. This decline relates principally to the short-term investment strategy associated with the Company's 2015 acquisitions. Yields on the funds invested in purchased mortgage pools were 2.77% during 2016, compared with 3.21% during 2015. Interest income on loans on a tax-equivalent basis increased substantially during 2016 to $218.8 million, compared with $170.0 million for 2015. During the quarter ended December 31, 2016, interest income on loans increased to $58.4 million, compared with $57.3 million for the third quarter of 2016 and $46.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2015.

Total interest expense for 2016 was $19.7 million, compared with $14.9 million for 2015. Deposit costs were stable for most of 2016, ending the year at 0.24%, compared with 0.23% for 2015. Deposit costs increased slightly in the fourth quarter of 2016 to 0.27%, compared with 0.23% for the third quarter of 2016. Non-interest bearing deposits represented 29.1% of the total average deposits for 2016, compared with 29.2% for 2015.

Non-Interest Income
Non-interest income increased 23.6% in 2016 to $105.8 million, compared with $85.6 million for 2015. Service charges on deposit accounts increased by $8.3 million to $42.7 million during 2016, an increase of 24.0% compared with 2015. Growth in service charge related revenues on commercial and consumer accounts was responsible for most of the increase in service charges, while NSF and debit card revenues were mostly flat.

Retail mortgage revenues increased 36.8% during 2016, from $43.3 million for 2015 to $59.3 million for 2016. Net income for the Company's retail mortgage division grew 42.3% during 2016 to $13.2 million. Revenues from the Company's warehouse lending division increased 54.1% during the year, from $5.5 million for 2015 to $8.5 million for 2016, and net income for the division increased 48.3%, from $3.1 million for 2015 to $4.6 million for 2016. Revenues and profitability slowed for both mortgage and warehouse lending in the fourth quarter, which is traditionally a slower time of the year. Net income for the Company's retail mortgage division was $2.6 million for the fourth quarter of 2016, compared with $3.5 million in the third quarter of 2016 and $2.0 million for the fourth quarter of 2015. Net income for the Company's wholesale lending division was $1.1 million for the fourth quarter of 2016, compared with $1.5 million for the third quarter of 2015 and $731,000 for the fourth quarter of 2015.

Revenues from the Company's SBA division continued to increase during 2016, rising from $8.3 million for 2015 to $8.9 million for 2016. Net income for the division remained stable at $2.8 million for both 2016 and 2015.

Non-Interest Expense
Non-interest expense increased $16.7 million, or 8.4%, to $215.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2016, compared with $199.1 million for the year 2015. Total expenses in 2016 include approximately $6.4 million in merger-related charges and $5.75 million in compliance-related charges, while total expenses in 2015 include approximately $8.0 million in merger-related charges. Excluding these amounts, expenses in 2016 increased by only $12.6 million, or 6.6%, compared with 2015 levels.

Salaries and benefits increased $12.8 million during 2016, driven by $2.5 million associated with the Company's acquisition of The Jacksonville Bank in March 2016 and $8.2 million relating to higher compensation levels in the Company's mortgage and SBA divisions.

Occupancy costs increased $3.2 million, or 15.1%, during 2016, principally as a result of the increased number of retail branches operated during the year, as well as additional expenses for administrative offices.

Data processing and IT-related costs increased $4.7 million, or 23.9%, in 2016. Growth in accounts associated with the acquisition of The Jacksonville Bank accounted for a portion of this increase, while the majority of the increase related to much higher online and mobile banking adoption.

Other non-interest expenses, excluding $5.75 million in compliance-related charges in 2016, increased 5.8% to $33.2 million during the year.

Balance Sheet Trends
Total assets increased $1.30 billion, or 23.3%, during 2016. This growth includes $528.9 million resulting from the acquisition of The Jacksonville Bank in March 2016 and $373.0 million resulting from the acquisition of the loan portfolio of US Premium Finance in December 2016.

Total loans, including loans held for sale, purchased non-covered loan pools and covered loans, were $5.37 billion at the end of 2016, compared with $4.02 billion at the end of 2015. Organic growth in loans totaled $660.4 million, or 20.8%, during 2016, compared with $344.2 million, or 13.5%, in 2015. As expected, loan growth rates in the fourth quarter of 2016 slowed, declining to 12.1% on an annualized basis, compared with 15.7% on an annualized basis in the same quarter of 2015.

Deposits increased $695.9 million during 2016 to end the year at $5.58 billion. At December 31, 2016, non-interest bearing deposit accounts were $1.57 billion, or 28.2% of total deposits, compared with $1.33 billion, or 27.3% of total deposits, at December 31, 2015. Non-rate sensitive deposits (including NIB, NOW and savings) totaled $3.17 billion at December 31, 2016, compared with $2.71 billion at the end of 2015. These funds represented 56.9% of the Company's total deposits at the end of 2016, compared with 55.6% at the end of 2015.

Stockholders' equity at December 31, 2016 totaled $646.4 million, an increase of $131.7 million, or 25.6%, from December 31, 2015. The increase in stockholders' equity was the result of the Company's issuance of $72.5 million of common shares in the acquisition of The Jacksonville Bank, plus earnings of $72.1 million during 2016, offset by dividends paid to shareholders of $10.5 million. Tangible book value per share was $14.42 at the end of 2016, up 14.0% from $12.65 at the end of 2015.

Equipment Finance
In addition to reporting its operating results, the Company also announced that it has hired a team of accomplished equipment finance industry veterans to launch a new division of its bank, "Ameris Equipment Finance". The team will be led by Chris Regas, who comes to the Company from Caterpillar Financial, which purchased a captive finance company that Mr. Regas had founded and grown successfully. Joining Mr. Regas are other industry veterans with expertise in origination, capital markets, underwriting, risk management and servicing.

Ameris Equipment Finance will focus on a growing, yet underserved, client base across a wide range of equipment sectors, including construction, transportation and manufacturing. Targeted transaction sizes will range from $500,000 to $10 million, with an average relationship size of approximately $1.5 million to $5.0 million. Current and prospective corporate clients of Ameris Bank will benefit from the expanded product offerings, as the Company leverages its core competency of lending to qualified middle-market clients nationwide.

Commenting on the new group, Mr. Hortman said, "The team we have recruited has a proven track record in this industry, managing a very large portfolio and managing through several credit cycles with outstanding results. We expect this strategy to further augment our organic growth rates and also be accretive to our credit quality, earnings per share growth rates and return on average assets. We are excited to welcome Chris and his team to the Company and believe that this is a great opportunity to diversify our portfolio."

Conference Call
The Company will host a teleconference at 11:00 a.m. Eastern time today (January 20, 2017) to discuss the Company's results and answer appropriate questions. The conference call can be accessed by dialing 1-877-504-1190 (or 1-855-669-9657 for participants in Canada and 1-412-902-6630 for other international participants). The conference ID name is Ameris Bancorp ABCB. A replay of the call will be available one hour after the end of the conference call until February 3, 2017. To listen to the replay, dial 1-877-344-7529 (or 1-855-669-9658 for participants in Canada and 1-412-317-0088 for other international participants). The conference replay access code is 10099453. The conference call replay and the financial information discussed will also be available on the Investor Relations page of the Ameris Bank website at www.amerisbank.com.

About Ameris Bancorp
Ameris Bancorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Moultrie, Georgia. The Company's banking subsidiary, Ameris Bank, had 97 locations in Georgia, Alabama, northern Florida and South Carolina at the end of the most recent quarter.

This news release contains certain performance measures determined by methods other than in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("GAAP"). Management of Ameris Bancorp (the "Company") uses these non-GAAP measures in its analysis of the Company's performance. These measures are useful when evaluating the underlying performance and efficiency of the Company's operations and balance sheet. The Company's management believes that these non-GAAP measures provide a greater understanding of ongoing operations, enhance comparability of results with prior periods and demonstrate the effects of significant gains and charges in the current period. The Company's management believes that investors may use these non-GAAP financial measures to evaluate the Company's financial performance without the impact of unusual items that may obscure trends in the Company's underlying performance. These disclosures should not be viewed as a substitute for financial measures determined in accordance with GAAP, nor are they necessarily comparable to non-GAAP performance measures that may be presented by other companies.

This news release contains statements that constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. The words "believe", "estimate", "expect", "intend", "anticipate" and similar expressions and variations thereof identify certain of such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the dates on which they were made. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Readers are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties and that actual results may differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements and are referred to the Company's periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's 2015 Annual Report on Form 10-K, for a summary of certain factors that may impact the Company's results of operations and financial condition.

AMERIS BANCORP
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
(unaudited)
(dollars in thousands except per share data and FTE headcount)
			Three Months Ended					Twelve Months Ended
			Dec.	Sept.	Jun.	Mar.	Dec.	Dec.	Dec.
			2016	2016	2016	2016	2015	2016	2015
EARNINGS
	Net Income		$                 18,177	$                 21,557	$                 20,049	$             12,317	$             14,148	$             72,100	$             40,847
	Adjusted Operating Net Income		$                 21,926	$                 21,557	$                 20,049	$             16,450	$             15,323	$             79,982	$             53,341
PER COMMON SHARE DATA
	Earnings per share available to common shareholders:
		Basic	$                     0.52	$                     0.62	$                     0.58	$                 0.38	$                 0.44	$                 2.10	$                 1.29
		Diluted	$                     0.52	$                     0.61	$                     0.57	$                 0.37	$                 0.43	$                 2.08	$                 1.27
	Cash Dividends per share		$                     0.10	$                     0.10	$                     0.05	$                 0.05	$                 0.05	$                 0.30	$                 0.20
	Book value per share (period end)		$                   18.51	$                   18.42	$                   17.96	$               17.25	$               15.98	$               18.51	$               15.98
	Tangible book value per share (period end)		$                   14.42	$                   14.38	$                   13.89	$               13.13	$               12.65	$               14.42	$               12.65
	Weighted average number of shares:
		Basic	34,915,459	34,869,747	34,832,621	32,752,063	32,199,632	34,346,570	31,761,624
		Diluted	35,293,035	35,194,739	35,153,311	33,053,554	32,594,929	34,701,732	32,126,667
	Period-end number of shares		34,921,474	34,891,304	34,847,311	34,837,454	32,211,385	34,921,474	32,211,385
	Market data:
		High closing price	$                   47.30	$                   35.80	$                   32.39	$               32.68	$               34.90	$               47.30	$               34.90
		Low closing price	$                   35.02	$                   29.09	$                   27.89	$               25.09	$               27.65	$               25.09	$               22.75
		Period end closing price	$                   43.60	$                   34.95	$                   29.70	$               29.58	$               33.99	$               43.60	$               33.99
		Average daily volume	191,894	166,841	215,409	253,779	301,775	206,487	173,391
PERFORMANCE RATIOS
	Return on average assets		1.10%	1.35%	1.31%	0.88%	1.03%	1.17%	0.85%
	Return on average common equity		11.06%	13.39%	13.08%	9.14%	10.94%	11.75%	8.37%
	Earning asset yield (TE)		4.34%	4.35%	4.35%	4.36%	4.30%	4.35%	4.47%
	Total cost of funds		0.38%	0.36%	0.35%	0.33%	0.32%	0.36%	0.34%
	Net interest margin (TE)		3.95%	3.99%	4.01%	4.03%	3.98%	3.99%	4.12%
	Non-interest income excluding securities transactions,
		as a percent of total revenue (TE)	27.32%	31.36%	32.01%	30.40%	29.56%	30.28%	30.68%
	Efficiency ratio		67.05%	61.91%	63.11%	74.41%	74.66%	66.38%	76.25%
CAPITAL ADEQUACY (period end)
	Stockholders' equity to assets		9.38%	9.90%	10.06%	9.85%	9.21%	9.38%	9.21%
	Tangible common equity to tangible assets		7.46%	7.90%	7.96%	7.68%	7.44%	7.46%	7.44%
EQUITY TO ASSETS RECONCILIATION
	Tangible common equity to tangible assets		7.46%	7.90%	7.96%	7.68%	7.44%	7.46%	7.44%
	Effect of goodwill and other intangibles		1.92%	2.00%	2.10%	2.17%	1.77%	1.92%	1.77%
		Equity to assets (GAAP)	9.38%	9.90%	10.06%	9.85%	9.21%	9.38%	9.21%
OTHER PERIOD-END DATA
	Banking Division FTE		1,035	1,011	1,023	1,085	1,075	1,035	1,075
	Mortgage Division FTE		263	259	245	233	229	263	229
		Total Ameris Bancorp FTE Headcount	1,298	1,270	1,268	1,318	1,304	1,298	1,304
	Assets per Banking Division FTE		$                   6,659	$                   6,423	$                   6,081	$               5,620	$               5,199	$               6,659	$               5,199
	Branch locations		97	99	102	103	101	97	101
	Deposits per branch location		$                 57,476	$                 53,597	$                 50,780	$             50,784	$             48,310	$             57,476	$             48,310

AMERIS BANCORP
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
(unaudited)
(dollars in thousands except per share data and FTE headcount)
			Three Months Ended					Twelve Months Ended
			Dec.	Sept.	Jun.	Mar.	Dec.	Dec.	Dec.
			2016	2016	2016	2016	2015	2016	2015
INCOME STATEMENT
Interest income
	Interest and fees on loans		$                 57,982	$                 57,322	$                 54,164	$             49,191	$             47,336	$           218,659	$           171,567
	Interest on taxable securities		4,348	4,336	4,554	4,586	4,540	17,824	16,134
	Interest on nontaxable securities		425	397	454	446	458	1,722	1,869
	Interest on deposits in other banks		193	147	159	328	262	827	790
	Interest on federal funds sold		8	8	9	8	5	33	33
		Total interest income	62,956	62,210	59,340	54,559	52,601	239,065	190,393
Interest expense
	Interest on deposits		$                   3,680	$                   3,074	$                   2,915	$               2,741	$               2,687	$             12,410	$               9,752
	Interest on other borrowings		1,997	2,069	1,836	1,382	1,296	7,284	5,104
		Total interest expense	5,677	5,143	4,751	4,123	3,983	19,694	14,856
Net interest income			57,279	57,067	54,589	50,436	48,618	219,371	175,537
Provision for loan losses			1,710	811	889	681	553	4,091	5,264
Net interest income after provision for loan losses			$                 55,569	$                 56,256	$                 53,700	$             49,755	$             48,065	$           215,280	$           170,273
Noninterest income
	Service charges on deposit accounts		$                 11,036	$                 11,358	$                 10,436	$               9,915	$             10,119	$             42,745	$             34,465
	Mortgage banking activity		9,878	14,067	14,142	10,211	8,586	48,298	36,800
	Other service charges, commissions and fees		706	791	967	1,111	1,112	3,575	3,754
	Gain(loss) on sale of securities		-	-	-	94	-	94	137
	Other non-interest income		2,652	2,648	2,834	2,955	2,590	11,089	10,430
		Total noninterest income	24,272	28,864	28,379	24,286	22,407	105,801	85,586
Noninterest expense
	Salaries and employee benefits		25,137	27,982	27,531	26,187	25,972	106,837	94,003
	Occupancy and equipment expenses		6,337	5,989	6,371	5,700	5,917	24,397	21,195
	Data processing and telecommunications expenses		6,244	6,185	6,049	6,113	6,046	24,591	19,849
	Credit resolution related expenses (1)		1,083	1,526	1,764	1,799	2,223	6,172	17,707
	Advertising and marketing expenses		1,273	1,249	854	805	1,171	4,181	3,312
	Amortization of intangible assets		1,044	993	1,319	1,020	1,160	4,376	3,741
	Merger and conversion charges		17	-	-	6,359	1,807	6,376	7,980
	Other non-interest expenses		13,542	9,275	8,471	7,617	8,732	38,905	31,328
		Total noninterest expense	54,677	53,199	52,359	55,600	53,028	215,835	199,115
Income before income taxes			$                 25,164	$                 31,921	$                 29,720	$             18,441	$             17,444	$           105,246	$             56,744
	Income tax expense		6,987	10,364	9,671	6,124	3,296	33,146	15,897
Net income			$                 18,177	$                 21,557	$                 20,049	$             12,317	$             14,148	$             72,100	$             40,847
Diluted earnings available to common shareholders			0.52	0.61	0.57	0.37	0.43	2.08	1.27
	(1) Includes expenses associated with problem loans and OREO, as well as OREO losses and writedowns.

AMERIS BANCORP
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
(unaudited)
(dollars in thousands except per share data and FTE headcount)
			Three Months Ended
			Dec.	Sept.	Jun.	Mar.	Dec.
			2016	2016	2016	2016	2015
PERIOD-END BALANCE SHEET
Assets
	Cash and due from banks		$               127,164	$               123,270	$               116,255	$           146,863	$           118,518
	Federal funds sold and interest bearing balances		71,221	90,801	68,273	107,373	272,045
	Investment securities available for sale, at fair value		822,735	838,124	843,646	837,103	783,185
	Other investments		29,464	24,578	19,125	12,802	9,323
	Mortgage loans held for sale		105,924	126,263	102,757	97,439	111,182
	Loans, net of unearned income		3,626,821	3,091,039	2,819,071	2,528,007	2,406,877
	Purchased, non-covered loans (excluding loan pools)		1,011,031	1,067,090	1,072,217	1,129,919	771,554
	Purchased, non-covered loan pools		568,314	624,886	610,425	656,734	592,963
	Covered loans		58,160	62,291	121,418	130,279	137,529
	Less allowance for loan losses		(23,920)	(22,963)	(21,734)	(21,482)	(21,062)
		Loans, net	5,240,406	4,822,343	4,601,397	4,423,457	3,887,861
	Other real estate owned		10,874	10,392	13,765	14,967	16,147
	Purchased, non-covered other real estate owned		11,332	14,126	13,928	15,048	14,333
	Covered other real estate owned		1,208	1,000	2,742	3,764	5,011
		Total other real estate owned	23,414	25,518	30,435	33,779	35,491
	Premises and equipment, net		121,217	122,191	123,978	124,747	121,639
	Goodwill		125,532	122,545	121,422	121,512	90,082
	Other intangibles, net		17,428	18,472	20,574	21,892	17,058
	FDIC loss sharing receivable		-	-	-	1,197	6,301
	Cash value of bank owned life insurance		78,053	77,637	77,095	76,676	64,251
	Other assets		129,473	101,753	96,337	92,931	72,004
		Total assets	$            6,892,031	$            6,493,495	$            6,221,294	$        6,097,771	$        5,588,940
Liabilities
	Deposits:
		Noninterest-bearing	$            1,573,389	$            1,563,316	$            1,553,972	$        1,529,037	$        1,329,857
		Interest-bearing	4,001,774	3,742,782	3,625,560	3,701,750	3,549,433
	Total deposits		5,575,163	5,306,098	5,179,532	5,230,787	4,879,290
	Federal funds purchased & securities sold under
		agreements to repurchase	53,505	42,647	37,139	43,741	63,585
	FDIC loss sharing payable, net		6,313	7,775	1,897	-	-
	Other borrowings		492,321	373,461	260,191	110,531	39,000
	Other liabilities		34,064	37,033	33,050	28,647	22,432
	Subordinated deferrable interest debentures		84,228	83,898	83,570	83,237	69,874
		Total liabilities	6,245,594	5,850,912	5,595,379	5,496,943	5,074,181
Stockholders' equity
Preferred stock			$                           -	$                           -	$                          -	$                      -	$                       -
Common stock			36,378	36,348	36,303	36,272	33,625
Capital surplus			410,276	409,630	408,549	407,726	337,349
Retained earnings			214,454	199,769	181,701	163,395	152,820
Accumulated other comprehensive income/(loss)			(1,058)	10,449	12,960	6,411	3,353
Less treasury stock			(13,613)	(13,613)	(13,598)	(12,976)	(12,388)
		Total stockholders' equity	646,437	642,583	625,915	600,828	514,759
		Total liabilities and stockholders' equity	$            6,892,031	$            6,493,495	$            6,221,294	$        6,097,771	$        5,588,940
Other Data
Earning Assets			6,293,670	5,925,072	5,656,932	5,499,656	5,084,658
Intangible Assets			142,960	141,017	141,996	143,404	107,140
Interest Bearing Liabilities			4,631,828	4,242,788	4,006,460	3,939,259	3,721,892
Average Assets			6,573,344	6,330,350	6,138,757	5,618,397	5,427,367
Average Common Stockholders' Equity			653,991	640,382	616,361	542,264	513,098

AMERIS BANCORP
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
(unaudited)
(dollars in thousands except per share data and FTE headcount)
			Three Months Ended					Twelve Months Ended
			Dec.	Sept.	Jun.	Mar.	Dec.	Dec.	Dec.
			2016	2016	2016	2016	2015	2016	2015
ASSET QUALITY INFORMATION(1)
Allowance for loan losses
	Balance at beginning of period		$                 22,963	$                 21,734	$                 21,482	$             21,062	$             22,471	$             21,062	$             21,157
	Provision for loan loss		1,710	811	889	681	553	4,091	5,264
		Charge-offs	1,686	1,451	1,376	1,814	2,675	6,327	9,133
		Recoveries	933	1,869	739	1,553	713	5,094	3,774
	Net charge-offs (recoveries)		753	(418)	637	261	1,962	1,233	5,359
	Ending balance		$                 23,920	$                 22,963	$                 21,734	$             21,482	$             21,062	$             23,920	$             21,062
	As a percentage of loans		0.66%	0.74%	0.77%	0.85%	0.88%	0.66%	0.88%
	As a percentage of nonperforming loans		132.05%	140.20%	135.81%	136.83%	124.92%	132.05%	124.92%
Net charge-off information
	Charge-offs
	Commercial, financial & agricultural		$                      726	$                      326	$                      541	$                  406	$                  501	$               1,999	$               1,438
	Real estate - residential		239	292	123	468	621	1,122	1,587
	Real estate - commercial & farmland		-	-	361	347	1,009	708	2,367
	Real estate - construction & development		264	60	109	155	157	588	622
	Consumer installment		159	74	59	59	110	351	410
	Purchased non-covered, including pools		240	408	111	307	178	1,066	950
	Covered		58	291	72	72	99	493	1,759
		Total charge-offs	1,686	1,451	1,376	1,814	2,675	6,327	9,133
	Recoveries
	Commercial, financial & agricultural		121	119	87	73	134	400	651
	Real estate - residential		23	40	14	314	13	391	151
	Real estate - commercial & farmland		78	13	57	121	13	269	317
	Real estate - construction & development		16	131	221	122	9	490	323
	Consumer installment		8	78	16	25	20	127	137
	Purchased non-covered, including pools		458	399	208	658	232	1,723	1,187
	Covered		229	1,089	136	240	292	1,694	1,008
		Total recoveries	933	1,869	739	1,553	713	5,094	3,774
	Net charge-offs (recoveries)		$                      753	$                    (418)	$                      637	$                  261	$               1,962	$               1,233	$               5,359
Non-accrual loans (excluding purchased non-covered
and covered loans)			18,114	16,379	16,003	15,700	16,860	18,114	16,860
Non-accrual purchased non-covered loans			18,420	17,993	15,767	19,187	13,330	18,420	13,330
Non-accrual purchased loan pools			-	864	864	-	-	-	-
Foreclosed assets (excluding purchased assets)			10,874	10,392	13,765	14,967	16,147	10,874	16,147
Purchased, non-covered other real estate owned			11,332	14,126	13,928	15,048	14,333	11,332	14,333
Accruing loans delinquent 90 days or more			-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Total non-performing assets, excluding covered assets			58,740	59,754	60,327	64,902	60,670	58,740	60,670
Non-performing assets as a percent of total assets			0.85%	0.92%	0.97%	1.06%	1.09%	0.85%	1.09%
Net charge offs as a percent of loans (Annualized)			0.06%	-0.04%	0.06%	0.03%	0.21%	0.03%	0.16%
Net charge offs, excluding purchased loans, loan pools and
covered loans, as a percent of loans (Annualized)			0.14%	0.05%	0.12%	0.13%	0.38%	0.11%	0.22%
(1) Asset quality information is presented net of covered assets where the Company's risk exposure is limited substantially by loss sharing agreements with the FDIC.

AMERIS BANCORP
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
(unaudited)
(dollars in thousands except per share data and FTE headcount)
		For the quarter ended:
		Dec.	Sept.	Jun.	Mar.	Dec.
	Loans by Type	2016	2016	2016	2016	2015
	Commercial, financial & agricultural	$               967,138	$               625,947	$               564,343	$           434,073	$           449,623
	Real estate - construction & development	363,045	328,308	274,717	264,820	244,693
	Real estate - commercial & farmland	1,406,219	1,297,582	1,248,580	1,154,887	1,104,991
	Real estate - residential	781,018	766,933	680,233	629,138	570,430
	Consumer installment	96,915	68,305	33,245	31,901	31,125
	Other	12,486	3,964	17,953	13,188	6,015
	Total Legacy (excluding purchased
	non-covered and covered)	$            3,626,821	$            3,091,039	$            2,819,071	$        2,528,007	$        2,406,877
	Commercial, financial & agricultural	$                 95,743	$                 99,596	$               101,803	$           111,537	$             45,462
	Real estate - construction & development	78,376	86,099	89,096	103,753	72,080
	Real estate - commercial & farmland	563,438	590,388	574,830	598,935	390,755
	Real estate - residential	268,888	286,169	300,898	309,770	258,153
	Consumer installment	4,586	4,838	5,590	5,924	5,104
	Total Purchased non-covered (net of discounts)	$            1,011,031	$            1,067,090	$            1,072,217	$        1,129,919	$           771,554
	Commercial, financial & agricultural	$                           -	$                           -	$                          -	$                      -	$                       -
	Real estate - construction & development	-	-	-	-	-
	Real estate - commercial & farmland	-	-	-	-	-
	Real estate - residential	568,314	624,886	610,425	656,734	592,963
	Consumer installment	-	-	-	-	-
	Total Purchased non-covered loan pools	$               568,314	$               624,886	$               610,425	$           656,734	$           592,963
	Commercial, financial & agricultural	$                      794	$                      830	$                   1,604	$               4,739	$               5,546
	Real estate - construction & development	2,992	3,220	7,168	7,205	7,612
	Real estate - commercial & farmland	12,917	13,688	65,091	67,055	71,226
	Real estate - residential	41,389	44,457	47,455	51,176	53,038
	Consumer installment	68	96	100	104	107
	Total Covered (net of discounts)	$                 58,160	$                 62,291	$               121,418	$           130,279	$           137,529
	Total Loan Portfolio:
	Commercial, financial & agricultural	$            1,063,675	$               726,373	$               667,750	$           550,349	$           500,631
	Real estate - construction & development	444,413	417,627	370,981	375,778	324,385
	Real estate - commercial & farmland	1,982,574	1,901,658	1,888,501	1,820,877	1,566,972
	Real estate - residential	1,659,609	1,722,445	1,639,011	1,646,818	1,474,584
	Consumer installment	101,569	73,239	38,935	37,929	36,336
	Other	12,486	3,964	17,953	13,188	6,015
	Total Loans	$            5,264,326	$            4,845,306	$            4,623,131	$        4,444,939	$        3,908,923
	Troubled Debt Restructurings, excluding purchased non-covered and covered loans:
	Accruing loan types:
	Commercial, financial & agricultural	$                        47	$                        53	$                      275	$                  279	$                  240
	Real estate - construction & development	686	691	468	476	792
	Real estate - commercial & farmland	4,119	5,535	5,802	5,945	5,766
	Real estate - residential	9,340	7,713	8,226	7,648	7,574
	Consumer installment	17	21	24	37	46
	Total Accruing TDRs	$                 14,209	$                 14,013	$                 14,795	$             14,385	$             14,418
	Non-accruing loan types:
	Commercial, financial & agricultural	$                      114	$                      112	$                        86	$                    75	$                  110
	Real estate - construction & development	35	35	36	30	63
	Real estate - commercial & farmland	2,970	2,015	1,832	1,871	596
	Real estate - residential	738	849	899	1,040	1,123
	Consumer installment	130	120	113	87	94
	Total Non-accrual TDRs	$                   3,987	$                   3,131	$                   2,966	$               3,103	$               1,986
	Total Troubled Debt Restructurings	$                 18,196	$                 17,144	$                 17,761	$             17,488	$             16,404
The following table presents the loan portfolio by risk grade, excluding purchased non-covered and covered loans:
	Grade 10 - Prime credit	$               414,564	$               398,781	$               349,725	$           254,203	$           250,609
	Grade 15 - Good credit	539,147	190,389	191,574	213,510	227,730
	Grade 20 - Satisfactory credit	1,669,998	1,608,265	1,493,561	1,346,050	1,224,320
	Grade 23 - Performing, under-collateralized credit	23,186	22,763	23,665	25,047	27,607
	Grade 25 - Minimum acceptable credit	907,588	797,148	687,817	628,042	609,413
	Grade 30 - Other asset especially mentioned	29,172	31,764	32,468	22,141	24,423
	Grade 40 - Substandard	43,067	41,929	40,261	39,013	42,773
	Grade 50 - Doubtful	99	-	-	-	-
	Grade 60 - Loss	-	-	-	1	2
	Total	$            3,626,821	$            3,091,039	$            2,819,071	$        2,528,007	$        2,406,877
The following table presents the purchased, non-covered loan portfolio by risk grade:
	Grade 10 - Prime credit	$                   6,536	$                   6,543	$                   6,899	$             10,505	$               9,602
	Grade 15 - Good credit	40,786	42,257	45,245	48,229	51,168
	Grade 20 - Satisfactory credit	324,838	331,309	345,480	344,479	336,990
	Grade 23 - Performing, under-collateralized credit	23,813	27,504	27,387	27,445	12,029
	Grade 25 - Minimum acceptable credit	541,408	575,280	557,221	607,838	294,829
	Grade 30 - Other asset especially mentioned	29,606	44,838	52,536	50,517	30,693
	Grade 40 - Substandard	44,044	39,359	37,417	40,874	36,211
	Grade 50 - Doubtful	-	-	30	30	30
	Grade 60 - Loss	-	-	2	2	2
	Total	$            1,011,031	$            1,067,090	$            1,072,217	$        1,129,919	$           771,554

AMERIS BANCORP
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
(unaudited)
(dollars in thousands except per share data and FTE headcount)
		Three Months Ended					Twelve Months Ended
		Dec.	Sept.	Jun.	Mar.	Dec.	Dec.	Dec.
		2016	2016	2016	2016	2015	2016	2015
AVERAGE BALANCES
	Federal funds sold	$                   5,261	$                   5,500	$                   7,186	$               6,200	$               5,500	$               6,033	$               5,500
	Interest bearing deposits in banks	122,538	85,051	96,906	201,814	291,303	126,453	214,120
	Investment securities - taxable	770,373	767,421	766,006	728,269	730,608	758,076	650,708
	Investment securities - nontaxable	66,566	68,325	69,664	68,824	69,711	68,340	71,035
	Other investments	19,732	21,687	14,765	9,606	9,322	16,470	9,422
	Mortgage loans held for sale	102,926	105,859	96,998	82,803	98,765	97,995	87,952
	Loans	3,145,714	2,897,771	2,653,171	2,410,747	2,333,577	2,777,505	2,161,726
	Purchased non-covered loans	1,042,333	1,086,039	1,111,814	836,187	752,508	1,019,093	712,022
	Purchased non-covered loan pools	590,617	629,666	630,503	627,178	454,884	619,440	201,689
	Covered loans	59,574	113,136	127,595	134,383	180,493	108,672	206,774
	Total Earning Assets	$            5,925,634	$            5,780,455	$            5,574,608	$        5,106,011	$        4,926,671	$        5,598,077	$        4,320,948
	Noninterest bearing deposits	$            1,592,073	$            1,546,211	$            1,561,621	$        1,362,007	$        1,324,999	$        1,515,771	$        1,227,682
	NOW accounts	1,253,849	1,085,828	1,087,442	1,137,076	1,100,972	1,141,206	877,949
	MMDA	1,435,958	1,435,151	1,413,503	1,278,199	1,212,087	1,390,948	1,074,349
	Savings accounts	262,782	266,344	265,936	251,108	241,337	261,559	209,206
	Retail CDs < $100,000	445,132	431,570	437,899	438,122	449,158	438,798	425,583
	Retail CDs > $100,000	497,113	451,115	439,954	406,699	395,978	448,243	384,761
	Brokered CDs	3,750	5,000	5,000	1,099	-	3,716	-
	Total Deposits	5,490,657	5,221,219	5,211,355	4,874,310	4,724,531	5,200,241	4,199,530
	FHLB advances	222,426	265,202	104,195	9,648	-	150,879	8,444
	Other borrowings	38,728	49,345	51,970	42,096	39,000	45,526	40,931
	Subordinated debentures	84,050	83,719	83,386	72,589	69,723	80,952	67,962
	Federal funds purchased and securities sold
	under agreements to repurchase	44,000	37,305	43,286	52,787	61,986	44,324	50,988
	Total Non-Deposit Funding	389,204	435,571	282,837	177,120	170,709	321,681	168,325
	Total Funding	$            5,879,861	$            5,656,790	$            5,494,192	$        5,051,430	$        4,895,240	$        5,521,922	$        4,367,855

AMERIS BANCORP
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
(unaudited)
(dollars in thousands except per share data and FTE headcount)
			Three Months Ended					Twelve Months Ended
			Dec.	Sept.	Jun.	Mar.	Dec.	Dec.	Dec.
			2016	2016	2016	2016	2015	2016	2015
INTEREST INCOME/EXPENSE
	INTEREST INCOME
		Federal funds sold	$                          8	$                          8	$                          9	$                      8	$                      5	$                    33	$                    33
		Interest bearing deposits in banks	193	147	159	328	262	827	790
		Investment securities - taxable	4,348	4,336	4,554	4,586	4,540	17,824	16,134
		Investment securities - nontaxable (TE)	654	536	613	602	618	2,405	2,523
		Mortgage loans held for sale	989	826	821	755	1,040	3,391	3,466
		Loans (TE)	37,418	33,672	31,531	28,684	27,901	131,305	103,206
		Purchased non-covered loans	16,036	17,629	17,062	13,133	12,129	63,860	46,208
		Purchased non-covered loan pools	3,950	4,346	3,730	5,144	3,335	17,170	6,481
		Covered loans	979	1,667	1,797	2,060	3,556	6,503	14,128
		Total Earning Assets	$                 64,575	$                 63,167	$                 60,276	$             55,300	$             53,386	$           243,318	$           192,969
		Accretion Income (included above)	3,370	3,604	4,196	2,942	2,912	14,112	11,681
	INTEREST EXPENSE
		Non-interest bearing deposits	$                           -	$                           -	$                          -	$                      -	$                       -	$                       -	$                       -
		NOW accounts	613	433	439	468	463	1,953	1,461
		MMDA	1,405	1,241	1,168	1,040	929	4,854	3,229
		Savings accounts	44	45	45	43	42	177	158
		Retail CDs < $100,000	553	493	476	512	594	2,034	2,202
		Retail CDs > $100,000	1,060	854	779	676	659	3,369	2,703
		Brokered CDs	6	8	8	2	-	24	-
		Total Deposits	3,681	3,074	2,915	2,741	2,687	12,411	9,753
		FHLB advances	328	393	155	23	-	899	31
		Other borrowings	432	479	484	370	328	1,765	1,362
		Subordinated debentures	1,216	1,179	1,173	954	924	4,522	3,536
		Federal funds purchased and securities sold
		under agreements to repurchase	21	18	24	35	44	98	174
		Total Non-Deposit Funding	1,997	2,069	1,836	1,382	1,296	7,284	5,103
		Total Funding	$                   5,678	$                   5,143	$                   4,751	$               4,123	$               3,983	$             19,695	$             14,856
		Net Interest Income (TE)	$                 58,897	$                 58,024	$                 55,525	$             51,177	$             49,403	$           223,623	$           178,113

AMERIS BANCORP
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
(unaudited)
(dollars in thousands except per share data and FTE headcount)
		Three Months Ended					Twelve Months Ended
		Dec.	Sept.	Jun.	Mar.	Dec.	Dec.	Dec.
		2016	2016	2016	2016	2015	2016	2015
YIELDS (1)
	Federal funds sold	0.60%	0.58%	0.50%	0.52%	0.36%	0.55%	0.60%
	Interest bearing deposits in banks	0.63%	0.69%	0.66%	0.65%	0.36%	0.65%	0.37%
	Investment securities - taxable	2.25%	2.25%	2.39%	2.53%	2.47%	2.35%	2.48%
	Investment securities - nontaxable	3.91%	3.12%	3.54%	3.52%	3.52%	3.52%	3.55%
	Mortgage loans held for sale	3.82%	3.10%	3.40%	3.67%	4.18%	3.46%	3.94%
	Loans	4.73%	4.62%	4.78%	4.79%	4.74%	4.73%	4.77%
	Purchased non-covered loans	6.12%	6.46%	6.17%	6.32%	6.39%	6.27%	6.49%
	Purchased non-covered loan pools	2.66%	2.75%	2.38%	3.30%	2.91%	2.77%	3.21%
	Covered loans	6.54%	5.86%	5.66%	6.17%	7.82%	5.98%	6.83%
	Total Earning Assets	4.34%	4.35%	4.35%	4.36%	4.30%	4.35%	4.47%
	Noninterest bearing deposits	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%
	NOW accounts	0.19%	0.16%	0.16%	0.17%	0.17%	0.17%	0.17%
	MMDA	0.39%	0.34%	0.33%	0.33%	0.30%	0.35%	0.30%
	Savings accounts	0.07%	0.07%	0.07%	0.07%	0.07%	0.07%	0.08%
	Retail CDs < $100,000	0.49%	0.45%	0.44%	0.47%	0.52%	0.46%	0.52%
	Retail CDs > $100,000	0.85%	0.75%	0.71%	0.67%	0.66%	0.75%	0.70%
	Brokered CDs	0.64%	0.64%	0.64%	0.73%	0.00%	0.65%	0.00%
	Total Deposits	0.27%	0.23%	0.22%	0.23%	0.23%	0.24%	0.23%
	FHLB advances	0.59%	0.59%	0.60%	0.96%	0.00%	0.60%	0.37%
	Other borrowings	4.44%	3.86%	3.75%	3.54%	3.34%	3.88%	3.33%
	Subordinated debentures	5.76%	5.60%	5.66%	5.29%	5.26%	5.59%	5.20%
	Federal funds purchased and securities sold
	under agreements to repurchase	0.19%	0.19%	0.22%	0.27%	0.28%	0.22%	0.34%
	Total Non-Deposit Funding	2.04%	1.89%	2.61%	3.14%	3.01%	2.26%	3.03%
	Total funding (3)	0.38%	0.36%	0.35%	0.33%	0.32%	0.36%	0.34%
	Net interest spread	3.95%	3.99%	4.00%	4.03%	3.98%	3.99%	4.13%
	Net interest margin	3.95%	3.99%	4.01%	4.03%	3.98%	3.99%	4.12%
(1) Interest and average rates are calculated on a tax-equivalent basis using an effective tax rate of 35%.
(2) Rate calculated based on average earning assets.
(3) Rate calculated based on total average funding including non-interest bearing liabilities.

AMERIS BANCORP
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
(unaudited)
(dollars in thousands except per share data and FTE headcount)
		Three Months Ended					Twelve Months Ended
		Dec.	Sept.	Jun.	Mar.	Dec.	Dec.	Dec.
	Adjusted Operating Net Income Reconciliation	2016	2016	2016	2016	2015	2016	2015
	Net income available to common shareholders	$                 18,177	$                 21,557	$                 20,049	$             12,317	$             14,148	$             72,100	$             40,847
	Merger and conversion charges	17	-	-	6,359	1,807	6,376	7,980
	Certain credit resolution related expenses	-	-	-	-	-	-	11,241
	Certain compliance resolution expenses	5,750	-	-	-	-	5,750	-
	Tax effect of management-adjusted charges	(2,018)	-	-	(2,226)	(632)	(4,244)	(6,727)
	Plus: After tax management-adjusted charges	3,749	-	-	4,133	1,175	7,882	12,494
	Adjusted Operating Net income	21,926	21,557	20,049	16,450	15,323	79,982	53,341
	Adjusted operating net income per diluted share:	$                     0.62	$                     0.61	$                     0.57	$                 0.50	$                 0.47	$                 2.30	$                 1.66
	Adjusted operating return on average assets	1.33%	1.35%	1.31%	1.18%	1.12%	1.30%	1.11%
	Adjusted operating return on average common
	tangible equity	17.04%	17.18%	17.03%	15.42%	14.97%	16.71%	13.66%
		Three Months Ended					Twelve Months Ended
		Dec.	Sept.	Jun.	Mar.	Dec.	Dec.	Dec.
	Net Interest Margin and Yields on Total Loans	2016	2016	2016	2016	2015	2016	2015
	Excluding Accretion Reconciliation
	Total Interest Income (TE)	$                 64,575	$                 63,167	$                 60,276	$             55,300	$             53,386	$           243,318	$           192,969
	Accretion Income	3,370	3,604	4,196	2,942	2,912	14,112	11,681
	Total Interest Income (TE) Excluding Accretion	$                 61,205	$                 59,563	$                 56,080	$             52,358	$             50,474	$           229,206	$           181,288
	Total Interest Expense	$                   5,677	$                   5,143	$                   4,751	$               4,123	$               3,983	$             19,694	$             14,856
	Net Interest Income (TE) Excluding Accretion	$                 55,528	$                 54,420	$                 51,329	$             48,235	$             46,491	$           209,512	$           166,432
	Yield on Total Loans Excluding Accretion	4.51%	4.49%	4.42%	4.60%	4.68%	4.50%	4.80%
	Net Interest Margin Excluding Accretion	3.73%	3.75%	3.70%	3.80%	3.74%	3.74%	3.85%
		Three Months Ended					Twelve Months Ended
		Dec.	Sept.	Jun.	Mar.	Dec.	Dec.	Dec.
	Core Earnings Reconciliation	2016	2016	2016	2016	2015	2016	2015
	Pre-tax operating profit/(loss)	$                 25,164	$                 31,921	$                 29,720	$             18,441	$             17,444	$           105,246	$             56,744
	Plus: Credit Related Costs
	Provision for loan losses	1,710	811	889	681	553	4,091	5,264
	(Gains)/Losses on the sale of legacy OREO	72	377	447	753	535	1,649	1,117
	Gains/(Losses) on the sale of covered OREO	1	(89)	28	166	610	106	880
	Problem loan and OREO expense	1,010	1,238	1,289	880	1,078	4,417	15,732
	Interest reversed (received) on non-accrual loans	21	41	35	34	58	131	644
	Total Credit-Related Costs	2,814	2,378	2,688	2,514	2,834	10,394	23,637
	Plus: Management-adjusted charges
	Conversion charges	17	-	-	6,359	1,807	6,376	7,980
	Compliance resolution expenses	5,750	-	-	-	-	5,750	-
	Less: Management-adjusted gains (losses)
	Gains on sales of securities	-	-	-	(94)	-	(94)	(137)
	Gains/(Losses) on sales of bank premises	430	238	401	(77)	(267)	992	(267)
	Pretax, Pre-provision earnings	$                 34,175	$                 34,537	$                 32,809	$             27,143	$             21,818	$           128,664	$             87,957
	As percentage of average assets, annualized	2.07%	2.17%	2.15%	1.94%	1.59%	2.09%	1.62%
		Three Months Ended					Twelve Months Ended
		Dec.	Sept.	Jun.	Mar.	Dec.	Dec.	Dec.
	Management-Adjusted Operating Expenses	2016	2016	2016	2016	2015	2016	2015
	Total Operating Expenses	54,677	53,199	52,359	55,600	53,028	215,835	199,115
	Less: Credit costs & managemnt-adjusted charges
	Gains/(Losses) on the sale of legacy OREO	(72)	(377)	(447)	(753)	(535)	(1,649)	(1,117)
	Gains/(Losses) on the sale of covered OREO	(1)	89	(28)	(166)	(610)	(106)	(880)
	Problem loan and OREO expense	(1,010)	(1,238)	(1,289)	(880)	(1,078)	(4,417)	(15,732)
	Conversion expenses	(17)	-	-	(6,359)	(1,807)	(6,376)	(7,980)
	Compliance resolution expenses	(5,750)	-	-	-	-	(5,750)	-
	Gains/(Losses) on the sale of premises	(430)	(238)	(401)	77	267	(992)	267
	Management-adjusted operating expenses	$                 47,397	$                 51,435	$                 50,194	$             47,519	$             49,265	$           196,545	$           173,673

AMERIS BANCORP
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
(unaudited)
(dollars in thousands except per share data and FTE headcount)
		Three Months Ended					Twelve Months Ended
		Dec.	Sept.	Jun.	Mar.	Dec.	Dec.	Dec.
	Segment Reporting	2016	2016	2016	2016	2015	2016	2015
	Banking Division:
	Net interest income	$                 50,240	$                 50,374	$                 48,940	$             45,801	$             44,088	$           195,355	$           159,777
	Provision for loan losses	610	57	733	681	504	2,081	4,847
	Noninterest income	13,466	13,949	13,018	12,735	12,739	53,168	44,251
	Noninterest expense:
	Salaries and employee benefits	17,084	18,323	18,428	18,989	19,225	72,824	68,183
	Occupancy	5,670	5,490	5,901	5,150	5,356	22,211	19,320
	Data Processing	5,885	5,794	5,685	5,820	5,759	23,184	18,681
	Other expenses	15,667	11,533	11,071	16,436	13,853	54,707	59,636
	Total noninterest expense	44,306	41,140	41,085	46,395	44,193	172,926	165,820
	Income before income taxes	18,790	23,126	20,140	11,460	12,130	73,516	33,361
	Income Tax	4,756	7,286	6,318	3,681	1,436	22,041	7,713
	Net income	$                 14,034	$                 15,840	$                 13,822	$               7,779	$             10,694	$             51,476	$             25,648
	Retail Mortgage Division:
	Net interest income	$                   4,118	$                   3,679	$                   3,293	$               3,020	$               2,812	$             14,110	$               8,821
	Provision for loan losses	33	447	93	-	49	573	417
	Noninterest income	9,036	13,198	13,304	9,624	7,966	45,162	34,498
	Noninterest expense:
	Salaries and employee benefits	7,098	8,940	8,304	6,347	5,855	30,689	22,112
	Occupancy	602	433	405	488	501	1,928	1,674
	Data Processing	326	364	338	272	266	1,300	1,065
	Other expenses	1,093	1,303	1,133	956	1,043	4,485	3,787
	Total noninterest expense	9,119	11,040	10,180	8,063	7,665	38,402	28,638
	Income before income taxes	4,002	5,390	6,324	4,581	3,064	20,297	14,264
	Income Tax	1,401	1,887	2,213	1,603	1,072	7,104	4,992
	Net income	$                   2,601	$                   3,504	$                   4,111	$               2,978	$               1,992	$             13,193	$               9,272
	Warehouse Lending:
	Net interest income	$                   1,972	$                   2,073	$                   1,622	$               1,019	$                  995	$               6,686	$               4,137
	Provision for loan losses	496	94	-	-	-	590	-
	Noninterest income	462	555	440	333	336	1,790	1,364
	Noninterest expense:
	Salaries and employee benefits	220	103	108	188	156	619	519
	Occupancy	1	1	1	1	3	4	7
	Data Processing	32	26	25	20	20	103	95
	Other expenses	29	26	26	25	28	106	123
	Total noninterest expense	282	156	160	234	207	832	744
	Income before income taxes	1,656	2,378	1,902	1,118	1,124	7,054	4,757
	Income Tax	580	832	666	391	393	2,469	1,665
	Net income	$                   1,076	$                   1,546	$                   1,236	$                  727	$                  731	$               4,585	$               3,092
	SBA Division:
	Net interest income	$                      949	$                      941	$                      734	$                  596	$                  723	$               3,220	$               2,802
	Provision for loan losses	571	213	63	-	-	847	-
	Noninterest income	1,308	1,162	1,617	1,594	1,366	5,681	5,473
	Noninterest expense:
	Salaries and employee benefits	735	616	691	663	736	2,705	3,189
	Occupancy	64	65	64	61	57	254	194
	Data Processing	1	1	1	1	1	4	8
	Other expenses	170	181	178	183	169	712	522
	Total noninterest expense	970	863	934	908	963	3,675	3,913
	Income before income taxes	716	1,027	1,354	1,282	1,126	4,379	4,362
	Income Tax	251	359	474	449	394	1,533	1,527
	Net income	$                      465	$                      668	$                      880	$                  833	$                  732	$               2,846	$               2,835
	Total Consolidated:
	Net interest income	$                 57,279	$                 57,067	$                 54,589	$             50,436	$             48,618	$           219,371	$           175,537
	Provision for loan losses	1,710	811	889	681	553	4,091	5,264
	Noninterest income	24,272	28,864	28,379	24,286	22,407	105,801	85,586
	Noninterest expense:
	Salaries and employee benefits	25,137	27,982	27,531	26,187	25,972	106,837	94,003
	Occupancy	6,337	5,989	6,371	5,700	5,917	24,397	21,195
	Data Processing	6,244	6,185	6,049	6,113	6,046	24,591	19,849
	Other expenses	16,959	13,043	12,408	17,600	15,093	60,010	64,068
	Total noninterest expense	54,677	53,199	52,359	55,600	53,028	215,835	199,115
	Income before income taxes	25,164	31,921	29,720	18,441	17,444	105,246	56,744
	Income Tax	6,987	10,364	9,671	6,124	3,296	33,146	15,897
	Net income	$                 18,177	$                 21,557	$                 20,049	$             12,317	$             14,148	$             72,100	$             40,847

CONTACT: For more information contact: Dennis J. Zember Jr., Executive Vice President, CFO & COO, (229) 890-1111

EX-99.2

Exhibit 99.2

Ameris Bancorp 4 th Quarter 2016 & YTD Results Investor Presentation

This presentation contains certain performance measures determined by methods other than in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) . Management of Ameris Bancorp (the “Company”) uses these non - GAAP measures in its analysis of the Company’s performance . These measures are useful when evaluating the underlying performance and efficiency of the Company’s operations and balance sheet . The Company’s management believes that these non - GAAP measures provide a greater understanding of ongoing operations, enhance comparability of results with prior periods and demonstrate the effects of significant gains and charges in the current period . The Company’s management believes that investors may use these non - GAAP financial measures to evaluate the Company’s financial performance without the impact of unusual items that may obscure trends in the Company’s underlying performance . These disclosures should not be viewed as a substitute for financial measures determined in accordance with GAAP, nor are they necessarily comparable to non - GAAP performance measures that may be presented by other companies . Tangible common equity and Tier 1 capital ratios are non - GAAP measures . The Company calculates the Tier 1 capital ratio using current call report instructions . The Company’s management uses these measures to assess the quality of capital and believes that investors may find them useful in their evaluation of the Company . These capital measures may, or may not be necessarily comparable to similar capital measures that may be presented by other companies . This presentation may contain statements that constitute “forward - looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27 A of the Securities Act of 1933 , as amended, and Section 21 E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 , as amended . The words “believe”, “estimate”, “expect”, “intend”, “anticipate” and similar expressions and variations thereof identify certain of such forward - looking statements, which speak only as of the dates which they were made . The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward - looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise . Readers are cautioned that any such forward - looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties and that actual results may differ materially from those indicated in the forward - looking statements as a result of various factors . Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward - looking statements and are referred to the Company’s periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a summary of certain factors that may impact the Company’s results of operations and financial condition . Cautionary Statements

Earnings Summary – Operating Basis Quarter to Date Results Year to Date Results 4Q16 4Q15 Change YTD 16 YTD 15 Change Operating Earnings $ 21,926 $ 15,323 43% $ 79,982 $ 53,341 50% Earnings Per Share $ 0.62 $ 0.47 32% $ 2.30 $ 1.66 39% Return on Assets 1.33% 1.12% 18% 1.30% 1.11% 17% Return on TCE 17.04% 14.97% 13% 16.71% 13.66% 24% NIM (net of accretion) 3.73% 3.74% 1% 3.74% 3.85% - 3% Efficiency Ratio 59.97 % 72.12% - 16% 62.65% 68.89% - 15% Net Overhead Ratio 1.84% 2.11% - 28% 1.68% 2.20% - 25%

4 Q 2016 Operating Highlights • Organic Loan Growth of $660.4 million, or 20.8% annualized • Operating efficiency ratio of 59.97% compared to 72.12% in 4Q 2015 • Total Revenue of $81.6 million, growth of 14.8% compared to 4Q 2015 • Legacy NPAs declined to 0.42% of total assets • Non - acquired NCOs of only 0.14% of loans • Net income contribution from lines of business increased to $4.1 million or 22.8% of net income. Standalone efficiency ratio of 58.1% • Growth in TBV per share by 14.0% over last twelve months

YTD 2016 Operating Highlights YTD 2016 YTD 2015 Asset Growth 1,303,091 1,551,863 Asset Growth Rate 23.32% 38.44% Organic Loan Growth 660,427 344,212 Organic Loan Growth Rate 20.78% 13.40% Total Revenue 325,172 263,699 Total Revenue Growth 24.53 % 23.01% Core Operating Expenses 203,709 179,894 Core OPEX Growth 13.24% 25.55% Operating Efficiency 62.65% 71.80% Legacy NPAs / Assets 0.42% 0.59% Credit Related Costs 10,263 22,971 • Core Operating expenses exclude merger related charges and compliance charges.. • Operating efficiency ratio formula is Core Operating Expenses divided by Net Interest Income and Non - interest income

Total Revenue Reliable increases in revenue • Up 19% over same quarter in 2015 • YTD, higher by 29% Diversified between spread and non - interest income: • 66.3% of revenue is spread related • 4.1% of revenue is accretion income Organic Growth in Non - Interest Income • Non - interest income higher by 16% compared to 3Q 2015 • Represents 1.82% of total assets $53.6 $53.8 $59.3 $69.7 $68.9 $72.5 $79.7 $83.3 $80.3 $30.0 $45.0 $60.0 $75.0 $90.0 4Q 14 1Q 15 2Q 15 3Q 15 4Q 15 1Q 16 2Q 16 3Q 16 4Q 16 Total Quarterly Revenue (in millions)

Net Interest Margin $36.2 $38.6 $45.1 $46.5 $48.2 $51.3 $54.4 $56.1 4.05% 3.87% 3.81% 3.74% 3.80% 3.70% 3.75% 3.76% 3.00% 3.50% 4.00% 4.50% $20.0 $30.0 $40.0 $50.0 $60.0 1Q 15 2Q 15 3Q 15 4Q 15 1Q 16 2Q 16 3Q 16 4Q 16 Net Interest Income before Accretion (in millions)

2017 Outlook Growth • Looking to sustain our operating ratios as we continue to grow the balance sheet . • Margins are stable in the 3 . 75 % - 3 . 80 % range (net of accretion) • Expect that higher rates will make us more competitive on the deposit side . Do not need higher rates to deliver on our earnings expectations . • Mortgage revenues should benefit from relationships with construction firms & brokers . Generally less than 15 % of business is refinance . Operating Performance • Expect to sustain current levels of organic growth in loans, especially given USPF and Equipment Finance Strategy • Will improve our deposit growth rates to better match growth in earning assets • Forecasting continued run - off in mortgage pools and do not anticipate additional purchases • Only 35 % of our 2017 budgeted loan growth is CRE • Expect Equipment Finance Division to originate approximately $ 200 mm - $ 250 mm . Consensus Estimates • Consensus estimates reflect 16% growth in operating EPS • 2017 consensus estimates are approximately $2.66 per share • Management comfortable with consensus estimates for 2017 and 2018.