Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB) Director Sells $44,819.20 in Stock

Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB) Director Donna L. Abelli sold 640 shares of Independent Bank stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.03, for a total value of $44,819.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 12,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $876,495.48. The trade was a 4.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Independent Bank Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:INDB opened at $68.53 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Independent Bank Corp. has a 1-year low of $45.11 and a 1-year high of $77.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.16 and a beta of 0.77. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $66.74 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $64.60.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The bank reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 predict that Independent Bank Corp. will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Independent Bank Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 30th were given a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 30th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.33%. Independent Bank’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.44%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Independent Bank

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in INDB. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Independent Bank during the 4th quarter worth about $28,810,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Independent Bank by 59.8% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 338,640 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $20,024,000 after purchasing an additional 126,791 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC increased its stake in Independent Bank by 1,697.7% in the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 132,435 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,831,000 after purchasing an additional 125,068 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in Independent Bank by 302.5% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 162,206 shares of the bank’s stock worth $10,412,000 after purchasing an additional 121,906 shares during the period. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Independent Bank during the third quarter worth $5,802,000. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on INDB shares. Raymond James reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $78.00 price target (up from $74.00) on shares of Independent Bank in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Independent Bank from $82.00 to $80.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Independent Bank from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $79.00.

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.