Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB) Shares Purchased by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB - Free Report) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,318,650 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 36,335 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 5.46% of Independent Bank worth $148,835,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in INDB. Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Independent Bank during the fourth quarter valued at $62,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 105.4% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,056 shares of the bank's stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 542 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 810.2% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,338 shares of the bank's stock worth $86,000 after buying an additional 1,191 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its position in shares of Independent Bank by 34.5% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,911 shares of the bank's stock valued at $123,000 after buying an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. lifted its stake 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 valued at $142,000 after buying an additional 1,737 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on INDB. StockNews.com cut shares of Independent Bank from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Independent Bank from $80.00 to $72.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Raymond James reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and set a $78.00 target price (up from $74.00) on shares of Independent Bank in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Independent Bank from $74.00 to $63.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $71.00.

Insider Transactions at Independent Bank

In related news, Director Donna L. Abelli sold 640 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.03, for a total transaction of $44,819.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 12,516 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $876,495.48. This represents a 4.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.81% of the company's stock.

Independent Bank Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of INDB traded down $0.32 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $58.04. The stock had a trading volume of 225,640 shares, compared to its average volume of 285,345. Independent Bank Corp. has a 12-month low of $45.11 and a 12-month high of $77.23. The firm has a market cap of $2.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.84 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $61.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $65.27.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The bank reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.18 by ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $178.04 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $175.03 million. Independent Bank had a net margin of 19.58% and a return on equity of 6.57%. Equities research analysts forecast that Independent Bank Corp. will post 5.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Independent Bank Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were given a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.07%. This is a positive change from Independent Bank's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Independent Bank's dividend payout ratio is presently 53.15%.

Independent Bank 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.