Independent Bank Co. (NASDAQ:IBCP) Stake Raised by Rhumbline Advisers

Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in Independent Bank Co. (NASDAQ:IBCP) by 0.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 41,649 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 374 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers owned about 0.20% of Independent Bank worth $1,451,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in IBCP. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Independent Bank by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 26,672 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $889,000 after buying an additional 384 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI acquired a new stake in Independent Bank during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 32,756 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,095,000 after buying an additional 1,217 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 499,546 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,663,000 after buying an additional 1,831 shares during the period. Finally, Foundry Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 210,870 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,033,000 after buying an additional 1,970 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.43% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on IBCP. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $41.00 price objective (up from $39.00) on shares of Independent Bank in a research note on Friday, January 24th. DA Davidson upped their target price on Independent Bank from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th.

Independent Bank Price Performance

Independent Bank stock opened at $32.53 on Wednesday. Independent Bank Co. has a 12 month low of $22.53 and a 12 month high of $40.32. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $34.81 and its 200-day moving average is $34.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The company has a market capitalization of $679.68 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.29 and a beta of 1.03.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:IBCP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.10. Independent Bank had a return on equity of 15.43% and a net margin of 20.67%. Equities research analysts expect that Independent Bank Co. will post 3.22 EPS for the current year.

Independent Bank Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th were paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 4th. This is a boost from Independent Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.20%. Independent Bank’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.91%.

Independent Bank Profile

Independent Bank Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Independent Bank that provides commercial banking services to individuals and businesses in rural and suburban communities in Michigan. It offers checking and savings accounts, commercial lending, direct and indirect consumer financing, mortgage lending, and safe deposit box services.