Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. Raises Position in Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB)

Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. raised its stake in Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB - Free Report) by 687.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 948,244 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 827,793 shares during the period. Independent Bank accounts for approximately 1.2% of Deprince Race & Zollo Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. owned 2.23% of Independent Bank worth $60,868,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,318,650 shares of the bank's stock valued at $148,835,000 after buying an additional 36,335 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Independent Bank by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 544,948 shares of the bank's stock valued at $34,980,000 after buying an additional 21,289 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 469,359 shares of the bank's stock worth $30,128,000 after purchasing an additional 46,046 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Independent Bank in the fourth quarter valued at $28,810,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Independent Bank by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 444,703 shares of the bank's stock worth $28,545,000 after purchasing an additional 37,941 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on INDB shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Independent Bank from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target 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. Raymond James restated a "strong-buy" rating and set a $78.00 price objective (up from $74.00) on shares of Independent Bank in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Piper Sandler cut 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $71.00.

Independent Bank Stock Performance

NASDAQ:INDB traded up $0.40 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $65.25. The company's stock had a trading volume of 73,878 shares, compared to its average volume of 287,744. Independent Bank Corp. has a 12 month low of $45.11 and a 12 month high of $77.23. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $60.00 and a 200-day moving average of $65.22. The firm has a market cap of $2.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.44 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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). Independent Bank had a return on equity of 6.57% and a net margin of 19.58%. The business had revenue of $178.04 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $175.03 million. Research analysts expect that Independent Bank Corp. will post 5.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Independent Bank Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a $0.59 dividend. 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. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.62%. Independent Bank's dividend payout ratio is 53.15%.

Independent Bank 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.