Independent Bank Corp. $INDB Shares Sold by Rafferty Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Rafferty Asset Management LLC has decreased its stake in Independent Bank Corp. by 22.2%, selling 11,350 shares during the first quarter, leading to ownership of 39,691 shares valued at approximately $2.49 million.
• Other institutional investors have increased their stakes, with Vanguard Group lifting its position by 2.3% and Deprince Race & Zollo raising it by an impressive 687.2%.
• The bank recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.59 per share, reflecting an annualized yield of 3.3% with a payout ratio of 53.27%.

Rafferty Asset Management LLC decreased its position in Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB - Free Report) by 22.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 39,691 shares of the bank's stock after selling 11,350 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned 0.09% of Independent Bank worth $2,487,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 3.3% in the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 7,049 shares of the bank's stock valued at $442,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 3.6% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 6,616 shares of the bank's stock valued at $414,000 after purchasing an additional 232 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 156.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 429 shares of the bank's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the period. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in Independent Bank by 15.3% during the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,204 shares of the bank's stock worth $138,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Isthmus Partners LLC grew its holdings in Independent Bank by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 37,994 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,380,000 after acquiring an additional 681 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on INDB shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Independent Bank from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, August 10th. Zacks Research cut shares of Independent Bank from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Independent Bank has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $71.00.

Independent Bank Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:INDB traded down $0.13 during trading on Friday, reaching $71.93. The stock had a trading volume of 164,140 shares, compared to its average volume of 337,806. Independent Bank Corp. has a one year low of $52.15 and a one year high of $77.23. The company has a market capitalization of $3.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.20 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $66.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $63.68.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The bank reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $181.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $179.47 million. Independent Bank had a return on equity of 6.39% and a net margin of 18.93%. As a group, research analysts expect that Independent Bank Corp. will post 5.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Independent Bank Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.59 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Independent Bank's dividend payout ratio is presently 53.27%.

Independent Bank Company 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.