Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Reduces Position in Independent Bank Co. (NASDAQ:IBCP)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans trimmed its position in Independent Bank Co. (NASDAQ:IBCP - Free Report) by 39.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 32,181 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 20,947 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned about 0.15% of Independent Bank worth $1,120,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of IBCP. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Independent Bank by 202.3% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 171,090 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,706,000 after purchasing an additional 114,487 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 7.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,034,775 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $34,510,000 after buying an additional 69,504 shares during the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP acquired a new stake in Independent Bank during the third quarter worth about $279,000. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Independent Bank by 1.5% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 26,672 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $889,000 after acquiring an additional 384 shares during the period. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC raised its position in Independent Bank by 9.3% during the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 264,090 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $8,807,000 after acquiring an additional 22,580 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.43% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

IBCP has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. DA Davidson raised their price objective on shares of Independent Bank from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a "market perform" rating and set a $41.00 price target (up previously from $39.00) on shares of Independent Bank in a research report on Friday, January 24th.

Independent Bank Price Performance

IBCP stock traded down $0.53 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $28.08. 150,656 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 103,952. The company has a market cap of $588.92 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.89 and a beta of 0.85. 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 $33.15 and its 200 day moving average is $34.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:IBCP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 20.67% and a return on equity of 15.43%. On average, research analysts expect that Independent Bank Co. will post 3.22 EPS for the current year.

Independent Bank Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. This is a positive change from Independent Bank's previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.70%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 4th. Independent Bank's payout ratio is 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.