UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Increases Holdings in Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB - Free Report) by 17.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 97,284 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 14,236 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned 0.23% of Independent Bank worth $6,245,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Independent Bank by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 206,079 shares of the bank's stock valued at $13,228,000 after purchasing an additional 5,792 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp bought a new stake in shares of Independent Bank in the 4th quarter valued at about $266,000. Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of Independent Bank by 75.0% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 94,976 shares of the bank's stock worth $5,616,000 after buying an additional 40,697 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Independent Bank during the 4th quarter worth approximately $722,000. Finally, Carl P. Sherr & Co. LLC raised its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 65.6% during the 4th quarter. Carl P. Sherr & Co. LLC now owns 9,975 shares of the bank's stock worth $640,000 after acquiring an additional 3,950 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Independent Bank from $74.00 to $63.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered Independent Bank from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, April 26th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Independent Bank from $80.00 to $72.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $71.00.

Independent Bank Stock Performance

Shares of Independent Bank stock traded up $1.92 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $63.87. The company had a trading volume of 303,002 shares, compared to its average volume of 294,535. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $59.77 and a 200 day simple moving average of $64.49. The stock has a market cap of $2.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.13 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Independent Bank Corp. has a 12-month low of $45.11 and a 12-month high of $77.23.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The bank reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.18 by ($0.12). The company had revenue of $178.04 million for 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%. As a group, analysts predict that Independent Bank Corp. will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Independent Bank Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.70%. This is an increase from Independent Bank's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. Independent Bank's dividend payout ratio is presently 53.15%.

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.