Vest Financial LLC Makes New $795,000 Investment in Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB)

Vest Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 12,691 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $795,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Independent Bank in the fourth quarter valued at about $62,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Independent Bank by 105.4% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,056 shares of the bank's stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 542 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Independent Bank by 810.2% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,338 shares of the bank's stock valued at $86,000 after acquiring an additional 1,191 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Independent Bank during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $255,000. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Independent Bank during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $266,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on INDB shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of 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. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Independent Bank from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 26th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price objective 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $71.00.

Independent Bank Price Performance

Shares of INDB traded down $0.43 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $65.20. 196,754 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 293,674. The company has a market cap of $2.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.42 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 52-week low of $45.11 and a 52-week high of $77.23. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.17 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $64.34.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The bank reported $1.06 EPS 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 analysts' expectations of $175.03 million. Independent Bank had a return on equity of 6.57% and a net margin of 19.58%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Independent Bank Corp. will post 5.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Independent Bank Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a $0.59 dividend. This is a boost from Independent Bank's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.62%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. Independent Bank's payout ratio is presently 53.15%.

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.