Brokerages Set Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB) Target Price at $79.00

Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB) has been given an average rating of “Buy” by the three brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $79.00.

INDB has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Independent Bank from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on 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, Raymond James reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $78.00 price target (up previously from $74.00) on shares of Independent Bank in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st.

Independent Bank Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ INDB opened at $67.79 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.00 and a beta of 0.77. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $66.41 and its 200 day moving average is $65.06. Independent Bank has a 52 week low of $45.11 and a 52 week high of $77.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95.

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

Independent Bank Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 30th were given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 30th. Independent Bank’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Independent Bank

In other Independent Bank news, Director Donna L. Abelli sold 640 shares of Independent Bank stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.03, for a total value of $44,819.20. Following the transaction, the director now owns 12,516 shares in the company, valued at $876,495.48. The trade was a 4.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.87% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of INDB. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 687.2% during the fourth quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 948,244 shares of the bank’s stock worth $60,868,000 after purchasing an additional 827,793 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Independent Bank during the fourth quarter worth about $28,810,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 59.8% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 338,640 shares of the bank’s stock worth $20,024,000 after purchasing an additional 126,791 shares during the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 1,697.7% during the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 132,435 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,831,000 after purchasing an additional 125,068 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 302.5% during 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 last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Independent Bank Company Profile

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.