Creasy Ross L 4

What Happened

• Ross L. Creasy, Chief Information Officer of Ameris Bancorp (ABCB), received equity awards on Feb 19, 2026 totaling 14,836 shares (two grants: 12,424 and 2,412). The awards were granted at $0.00 per share (award/vesting event). To satisfy tax withholding on the award, 5,534 shares were withheld/disposed at $82.93 per share, generating $458,935. Net shares retained from the grants = 9,302 (14,836 granted minus 5,534 withheld).

Key Details

• Transaction date: February 19, 2026; Form 4 filed February 23, 2026 (filed within required reporting window).
• Grant details:
  • 12,424 shares: performance stock unit award originally granted Feb 23, 2023 under the Ameris Bancorp 2021 Omnibus Equity Compensation Plan (footnote F1).
  • 2,412 shares: time-based award vesting 804 shares each on Feb 19 of 2027, 2028 and 2029 (footnote F3).
• Tax withholding: 5,534 shares withheld/ disposed at $82.93/share to cover tax obligations (footnote F2); proceeds reported $458,935.
• Additional note: the filing indicates 35.08952 shares were acquired via a dividend reinvestment plan and are included in the reported totals (footnote F4).
• Shares owned after transaction: the Form 4 does not state a total post-transaction ownership balance; net newly retained from these grants is 9,302 shares.

Context

• This was an award/vesting event (codes A), not an open-market purchase — routine equity compensation for executives. The withholding of shares (code F) is a common cashless method to satisfy tax obligations and does not necessarily indicate a deliberate sale for investment reasons. The 12,424 award was a performance-based PSU originally granted in 2023; the 2,412 award vests over three years.