Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB) Given Consensus Rating of “Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB) have been given an average recommendation of “Buy” by the two research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $60.00.

A number of analysts recently issued reports on INDB shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Independent Bank from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Seaport Res Ptn raised Independent Bank from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd.

Independent Bank Stock Performance

NASDAQ INDB opened at $58.86 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Independent Bank has a fifty-two week low of $44.63 and a fifty-two week high of $68.75. The business has a fifty day moving average of $60.66 and a 200-day moving average of $53.92. The stock has a market cap of $2.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.36 and a beta of 0.75.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The bank reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.10. Independent Bank had a net margin of 22.42% and a return on equity of 7.41%. The firm had revenue of $244.19 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $169.07 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.42 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Independent Bank will post 4.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Independent Bank Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 4th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.87%. Independent Bank’s payout ratio is 44.02%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Independent Bank

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC acquired a new position in Independent Bank in the fourth quarter valued at $217,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Independent Bank during the 4th quarter worth about $32,784,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its position in Independent Bank by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 303,905 shares of the bank’s stock worth $20,000,000 after purchasing an additional 1,917 shares in the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP acquired a new stake in Independent Bank during the 4th quarter worth approximately $447,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its holdings in Independent Bank by 902.8% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 268,315 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $17,730,000 after buying an additional 241,558 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

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.