Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB) Given Average Recommendation of “Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB) have earned an average rating of “Buy” from the three analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $79.00.

Several equities analysts have recently commented on INDB shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Independent Bank from $82.00 to $80.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. StockNews.com upgraded Independent Bank from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Raymond James reissued a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $78.00 target price (up previously from $74.00) on shares of Independent Bank in a report on Tuesday.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in Independent Bank by 34.5% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,911 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $123,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares during the period. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. lifted its position in shares of Independent Bank by 364.9% during the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 2,213 shares of the bank’s stock worth $142,000 after purchasing an additional 1,737 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Independent Bank during the third quarter valued at $222,000. Profund Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Independent Bank in the second quarter worth about $229,000. Finally, Relyea Zuckerberg Hanson LLC purchased a new position in Independent Bank in the 4th quarter worth about $250,000. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Independent Bank Price Performance

NASDAQ INDB opened at $65.88 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 has a 12 month low of $45.11 and a 12 month high of $77.23. The stock has a market cap of $2.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.58 and a beta of 0.78. The company’s 50 day moving average is $68.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $63.37.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Independent Bank will post 5.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Independent Bank Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 6th. Investors of record on Monday, December 30th were given a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 30th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.46%. Independent Bank’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.44%.

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.