Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) Upgraded to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and set a $78.00 price target (up from $74.00) on shares of Independent Bank in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Independent Bank from $82.00 to $80.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st.

Independent Bank Stock Performance

Independent Bank stock opened at $65.18 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $2.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.42 and a beta of 0.77. Independent Bank has a 12 month low of $45.11 and a 12 month high of $77.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $66.45 and its 200-day moving average is $65.62.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The bank reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.16 by $0.05. Independent Bank had a net margin of 19.58% and a return on equity of 6.57%. Equities analysts anticipate that Independent Bank will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Independent Bank Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.62%. This is a positive change from Independent Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Independent Bank’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.44%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Independent Bank news, Director Donna L. Abelli sold 640 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.03, for a total transaction of $44,819.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 12,516 shares in the company, valued at $876,495.48. This trade represents a 4.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.87% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Independent Bank

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in INDB. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Independent Bank in the fourth quarter valued at $2,157,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 17.1% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 97,284 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,245,000 after purchasing an additional 14,236 shares in the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Independent Bank by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 209,963 shares of the bank’s stock worth $13,478,000 after purchasing an additional 4,798 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC acquired a new position in Independent Bank in the fourth quarter worth about $3,207,000. Finally, Twinbeech Capital LP bought a new stake in Independent Bank in the fourth quarter valued at about $503,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

About Independent Bank

Independent Bank Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Rockland Trust Company that provides commercial banking products and services to individuals and small-to-medium sized businesses in the United States. The company provides interest checking, money market, and savings accounts, as well as demand deposits and time certificates of deposit.