Independent Bank Corporation $IBCP Stock Holdings Increased by Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc.

Key Points

• Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its stake in Independent Bank Corporation by 28.4%, acquiring a total of 110,938 shares valued at $3.42 million.
• Vanguard Group Inc. and other institutional investors have also raised their positions in Independent Bank, with institutional ownership now at 79.43%.
• Independent Bank reported earnings of $0.81 per share, exceeding expectations, along with a recently announced quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, representing a yield of 3.2%.

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its position in Independent Bank Corporation (NASDAQ:IBCP - Free Report) by 28.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 110,938 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 24,550 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. owned 0.54% of Independent Bank worth $3,416,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. FJ Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. FJ Capital Management LLC now owns 683,156 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $21,034,000 after purchasing an additional 12,672 shares during the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC raised its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 1,039.8% during the 1st quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 60,989 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,878,000 after buying an additional 55,638 shares in the last quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 18,066 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $556,000 after buying an additional 952 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC raised its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 36.6% during the 1st quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 19,447 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $599,000 after buying an additional 5,209 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Martingale Asset Management L P grew its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 53,381 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,644,000 after acquiring an additional 1,340 shares during the period. 79.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Independent Bank Stock Up 0.6%

NASDAQ:IBCP traded up $0.21 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $31.95. The company had a trading volume of 7,373 shares, compared to its average volume of 98,378. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $32.43 and a 200-day simple moving average of $31.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Independent Bank Corporation has a 1 year low of $26.75 and a 1 year high of $40.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $661.58 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.41 and a beta of 0.87.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:IBCP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.03. Independent Bank had a return on equity of 14.05% and a net margin of 20.31%.The company had revenue of $55.94 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $47.72 million. Equities analysts forecast that Independent Bank Corporation will post 3.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Independent Bank Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th were paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 5th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Independent Bank's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.88%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, DA Davidson increased their target price on Independent Bank from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $36.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Stefanie M. Kimball sold 1,400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.64, for a total transaction of $45,696.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 62,389 shares in the company, valued at $2,036,376.96. This trade represents a 2.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Gavin A. Mohr bought 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $29.64 per share, with a total value of $59,280.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the executive vice president directly owned 23,826 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $706,202.64. This represents a 9.16% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 5.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Independent Bank

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.