Hoschton, Ga.-based Hamilton State Bancshares Inc. on Jan. 24 declared a dividend of $9 million, according to a regulatory filing recently obtained by S&P Global Market Intelligence.

The dividend, which was declared after the company received regulatory approval for its merger with Ameris Bancorp, was paid Feb. 28 to shareholders of record as of Feb. 21. Hamilton has 34,702,329 outstanding voting common shares and 5,723,226 nonvoting shares.

On the same day, Hamilton State Bank declared a dividend of $11 million, payable to parent Hamilton State Bancshares.