Sifting through countless of stocks in the Banks industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in KeyCorp or Ameris Bancorp because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how KeyCorp and Ameris Bancorp compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About KeyCorp and Ameris Bancorp

KeyCorp operates as the holding company for KeyBank National Association that provides various retail and commercial banking products and services in the United States. It operates in two segments, Consumer Bank and Commercial Bank. The company offers various deposits and investment products; personal finance and financial wellness, lending, student loan refinancing, mortgage and home equity, credit card, treasury, and business advisory; commercial leasing, investment management, consumer finance; and wealth management and investment services for institutional, non-profit, and high-net-worth clients. It also provides lending, cash management, equipment financing, and commercial mortgage loans; and capital market products and services, such as syndicated finance, debt and equity underwriting, fixed income and equity sales and trading, derivatives, foreign exchange, mergers and acquisition, other advisory services, and public finance to large corporate and institutional clients. In addition, the company offers personal and institutional trust custody services, personal financial and planning services, access to mutual funds, treasury services, and international banking services. Further, it provides community development financing, securities underwriting, brokerage, and investment banking services, as well as merchant services. The company was founded in 1849 and is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio.

Ameris Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for Ameris Bank that provides various banking services to retail and commercial customers. It operates through four segments: Banking Division, Retail Mortgage Division, Warehouse Lending Division, and Premium Finance Division. The company offers commercial and retail checking, interest-bearing savings, money market, individual retirement, and certificates of deposit accounts. It also provides commercial real estate, residential real estate mortgage, agricultural, and commercial and industrial loans; consumer loans, including home improvement and home equity loans, as well as loans secured by savings accounts and personal credit lines. In addition, the company originates, administers, and services commercial insurance premium loans; equipment finance loans; and small business administration loans. Further, it operates full-service domestic banking offices, and mortgage and loan production offices. Ameris Bancorp was founded in 1971 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

Latest Banks and KeyCorp, Ameris Bancorp Stock News

As of July 31, 2026, KeyCorp had a $24.2 billion market capitalization, compared to the Banks median of $716.9 million. KeyCorp’s stock is up 9.6% in 2026, up 0.5% in the previous five trading days and up 24.39% in the past year.

Currently, KeyCorp’s price-earnings ratio is 13.9. KeyCorp’s trailing 12-month revenue is $7.2 billion with a 27.5% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 11.8%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $1.827 per share for the current fiscal year. KeyCorp currently has a 3.6% dividend yield.

As of July 31, 2026, Ameris Bancorp had a $5.8 billion market cap, putting it in the 69th percentile of all stocks. Ameris Bancorp’s stock is up 18.7% in 2026, up 2.4% in the previous five trading days and up 27.07% in the past year.

Currently, Ameris Bancorp’s price-earnings ratio is 13.7. Ameris Bancorp’s trailing 12-month revenue is $1.2 billion with a 31.8% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 12.8%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $6.636 per share for the current fiscal year. Ameris Bancorp currently has a 0.9% dividend yield.

How We Compare KeyCorp and Ameris Bancorp Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at KeyCorp and Ameris Bancorp’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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KeyCorp and Ameris Bancorp Stock Value Grades

Company	Ticker	Value
KeyCorp	KEY	B
Ameris Bancorp	ABCB	B

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection.

Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

AAII’s A+ Investor Value Grade derives from a stock’s value score. The Value Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of the price-to-sales ratio, price-earnings ratio, enterprise-value-to-EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) ratio, shareholder yield, price-to-book-value ratio and price-to-free-cash-flow ratio. The score is variable, meaning it can consider all six ratios or, should any of the six ratios not be valid, the remaining ratios that are valid. To be assigned a Value Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) ratio and corresponding ranking for at least two of the six valuation ratios.

Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are a good value and so on.

KeyCorp has a Value Score of 63, which is Value. Ameris Bancorp has a Value Score of 63, which is Value.

The Value Stock Winner: It’s a Tie!

Looking at the Value Grade breakdown above, both KeyCorp and Ameris Bancorp have a Value Grade of B. For investors who focus solely on a company’s valuation, you will need to conduct further research into both of these companies’ other metrics to see if they could be good additions to your portfolio. It’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

KeyCorp and Ameris Bancorp’s Quality Grades

Company	Ticker	Quality
KeyCorp	KEY	D
Ameris Bancorp	ABCB	D

Like the Value Grade, AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the percentile rank of key metrics. Specifically, the Quality Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and the F-Score.

The score is variable, meaning it can consider all eight measures or, should any of the eight measures not be valid, the remaining measures that are valid. To be assigned a Quality Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) measure and corresponding ranking for at least four of the eight quality measures.

The Quality Score is used to assess the underlying “quality” of a particular stock. A higher-quality stock possesses traits associated with upside potential and reduced downside risk. Backtesting of the Quality Grade shows that stocks with higher grades, on average, outperformed stocks with lower grades over the period of 1998 through 2019.

Stocks receive better grades (higher scores) for having higher scores for the quality subcomponents and worse grades (lower scores) for lower scores for the subcomponents.

KeyCorp has a Quality Score of 34, which is Weak. Ameris Bancorp has a Quality Score of 30, which is Weak.

The Quality Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither KeyCorp or Ameris Bancorp has a high enough Quality Grade to be considered a “winner.” Investors who are considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolios. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if KeyCorp or Ameris Bancorp is the better investment when it comes to quality.

KeyCorp and Ameris Bancorp’s Momentum Grades

Company	Ticker	Momentum
KeyCorp	KEY	C
Ameris Bancorp	ABCB	C

Momentum grades help to uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming. Momentum is based on the price change of a stock over a specified period relative to all other stocks.

Typically, AAII looks at the weighted relative strength over the trailing four quarters. The weighted four-quarter relative strength rank is the relative price change for each of the past four quarters. The most recent quarterly price change is given a weight of 40% and each of the three previous quarters are given a weighting of 20%.

KeyCorp has a Momentum Score of 60, which is Average. Ameris Bancorp has a Momentum Score of 58, which is Average.

The Momentum Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither KeyCorp or Ameris Bancorp has a strong enough Momentum Grade to be considered a “winner.” Investors considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolios. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if KeyCorp or Ameris Bancorp is the better investment when it comes to momentum.

Other KeyCorp and Ameris Bancorp Grades

In addition to Value, Momentum and Quality, A+ Investor also provides grades for Growth and Estimate Revisions.

Earnings estimate revisions scores take into account the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, surprises beget further surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Growth investing builds on the idea that stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth outperform those of slower-growth companies. AAII measures growth through consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether KeyCorp and Ameris Bancorp pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, KeyCorp or Ameris Bancorp Stock?

Overall, KeyCorp stock has a Value Score of 63, Momentum Score of 60 and Quality Score of 34.

Ameris Bancorp stock has a Value Score of 63, Momentum Score of 58 and Quality Score of 30.

Comparing KeyCorp and Ameris Bancorp’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.