Bailard Inc. Has $740,000 Stake in Independent Bank Co. (NASDAQ:IBCP)

Bailard Inc. lifted its stake in Independent Bank Co. (NASDAQ:IBCP) by 13.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 21,260 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,500 shares during the quarter. Bailard Inc.’s holdings in Independent Bank were worth $740,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Independent Bank by 28.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 349,631 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,660,000 after buying an additional 77,874 shares during the last quarter. Summit Global Investments acquired a new position in shares of Independent Bank during the third quarter valued at $344,000. Quest Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Independent Bank by 112.8% in the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 24,157 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $806,000 after acquiring an additional 12,803 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its position in Independent Bank by 13.7% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 26,182 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $873,000 after purchasing an additional 3,154 shares during the period. Finally, Foundry Partners LLC increased its position in Independent Bank by 0.9% in the third quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 210,870 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,033,000 after purchasing an additional 1,970 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.43% of the company’s stock.

Independent Bank Trading Down 0.7 %

NASDAQ:IBCP opened at $33.73 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Independent Bank Co. has a 1-year low of $22.53 and a 1-year high of $40.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $704.75 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.67 and a beta of 1.03. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $34.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $34.82.

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

Independent Bank Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th were given a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.08%. This is a boost from Independent Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 4th. Independent Bank’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of Independent Bank from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $41.00 price objective (up from $39.00) on shares of Independent Bank in a report on Friday, January 24th.

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.