Ameris Bancorp erased $58.4 million of net income in the three months ended June 30, 2026. That is more than three times the $18 million it generated from equipment finance over the first six months of the year, a useful scale check on how sharply the bottom line moved.
Net income fell 53.2%, from $109.8 million to $51.4 million, while diluted EPS dropped from $1.60 to $0.77. The share count did shrink 2.5%, to 67.1 million, so fewer shares softened the per-share damage. They did not change the basic arithmetic: Ameris produced roughly half as much profit as it did in the comparable three-month period.
The latest 10-Q does not pin that decline to one headline item in the supplied figures. It does show a bank spending more on the machinery and systems behind the business. Capital spending was 58.2% higher year over year, and several operating lines also moved up.
Ameris described technology spending as part of the reason for higher data-processing costs:
"Data processing and communications expenses increased $2.1 million, or 7.1%, to $32.4 million in the first six months of 2026, from $30.2 million in the same period of 2025, primarily due to increases in volume and continued technology investment."
Ameris Bancorp, Form 10-Q, Aug. 7, 2026
That is not a pure cost-cutting story. The bank is absorbing more expense as transaction volume and technology investment rise. Occupancy and equipment expenses also increased 9.5% to $24.2 million over the first six months, driven primarily by depreciation and building repairs and maintenance.
There were areas of growth on the income side. Service charges on deposit accounts rose 4.1% to $27.7 million over six months, which Ameris attributed primarily to deposit growth. Equipment finance was stronger still:
"Income from equipment finance activity increased $4.8 million, or 35.9%, to $18.0 million during the first six months of 2026, compared with $13.3 million during the same period of 2025 primarily due to increased non-insurance charges."
Ameris Bancorp, Form 10-Q, Aug. 7, 2026
The operating picture is therefore narrower than a simple “bank earnings fell” headline. Ameris added income in selected businesses and reduced its diluted share count, while investment, depreciation, repairs, and other expenses increased. The filing shows growth in some business lines alongside lower net income for the latest three-month period.
The stock's latest close was $88.19, down 0.8% on Aug. 6. Over the prior 12 months, it was up 31.2%, putting the filing beside a year of share-price gains without supplying a causal explanation for either the return or the one-day move.
Ameris's next quarterly report will provide the cleanest comparison for whether the higher technology and occupancy costs continue to rise, stabilize, or recede alongside net income. For now, the numbers leave one plain tension: more activity, roughly half the profit.