Boston Trust Walden Corp Raises Holdings in Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB)

Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its stake in Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB - Free Report) by 22.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 518,119 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 93,901 shares during the quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp owned 1.18% of Independent Bank worth $34,097,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in INDB. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC bought a new stake in Independent Bank in the 3rd quarter valued at about $4,663,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Independent Bank during the fourth quarter valued at about $3,463,000. Canvas Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Independent Bank during the third quarter valued at about $399,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Independent Bank during the third quarter valued at about $659,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Independent Bank by 29.6% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 13,569 shares of the bank's stock valued at $666,000 after buying an additional 3,098 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

INDB has been the topic of several analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on Independent Bank from $66.00 to $64.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. TheStreet cut Independent Bank from a "b-" rating to a "c+" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Independent Bank news, Director Donna L. Abelli sold 800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.83, for a total value of $42,264.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,640 shares of the company's stock, valued at $614,941.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.87% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Independent Bank Price Performance

Shares of INDB stock traded down $0.27 during trading on Friday, hitting $49.19. The company had a trading volume of 140,902 shares, compared to its average volume of 292,686. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock's 50-day moving average is $52.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.08 and a beta of 0.83. Independent Bank Corp. has a 52 week low of $43.28 and a 52 week high of $68.75.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 18th. The bank reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $177.16 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $176.75 million. Independent Bank had a net margin of 26.02% and a return on equity of 8.35%. As a group, analysts predict that Independent Bank Corp. will post 4.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Independent Bank Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 5th. Investors of record on Monday, April 1st will be given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.64%. This is a boost from Independent Bank's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 28th. Independent Bank's dividend payout ratio is 42.07%.

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.