NFJ Investment Group LLC Has $34.95 Million Position in Independent Bank Corp. $INDB

NFJ Investment Group LLC cut its holdings in shares of Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB) by 3.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 478,234 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 17,282 shares during the quarter. Independent Bank comprises 1.3% of NFJ Investment Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. NFJ Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Independent Bank were worth $34,949,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 14.9% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,943,817 shares of the bank’s stock worth $411,134,000 after acquiring an additional 769,086 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 10.6% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,606,415 shares of the bank’s stock worth $180,286,000 after acquiring an additional 250,651 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 57.9% during the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,703,144 shares of the bank’s stock worth $107,102,000 after acquiring an additional 624,833 shares during the last quarter. Rockland Trust Co. increased its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 84.1% during the fourth quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 1,261,622 shares of the bank’s stock worth $92,199,000 after purchasing an additional 576,183 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,232,467 shares of the bank’s stock worth $90,082,000 after purchasing an additional 20,278 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Independent Bank news, Director Joseph C. Lerner sold 2,832 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.31, for a total transaction of $218,941.92. Following the transaction, the director owned 16,215 shares in the company, valued at $1,253,581.65. This trade represents a 14.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Independent Bank Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ INDB opened at $83.27 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $4.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.52 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. Independent Bank Corp. has a 1-year low of $57.01 and a 1-year high of $87.00. The business’s 50 day moving average is $78.62 and its 200-day moving average is $77.75.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 16th. The bank reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70 by ($0.02). Independent Bank had a return on equity of 8.66% and a net margin of 19.14%.The company had revenue of $252.72 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $251.45 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.06 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Independent Bank Corp. will post 7.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Independent Bank Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 30th were paid a dividend of $0.64 per share. This is a boost from Independent Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.59. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 30th. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. Independent Bank’s dividend payout ratio is 50.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on INDB. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Independent Bank from $96.00 to $94.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Stephens began coverage on Independent Bank in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $88.00 target price on the stock. Independent Research set a $95.00 target price on Independent Bank in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Piper Sandler began coverage on Independent Bank in a research note on Monday, March 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $84.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Hovde Group began coverage on Independent Bank in a research note on Friday, May 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Independent Bank currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $90.71.

Independent Bank Profile

Independent Bank Group, Inc (NASDAQ:INDB) is a bank holding company headquartered in McKinney, Texas, that provides a range of financial services through its wholly owned subsidiary, Independent Bank. Tracing its roots to the late 19th century, the company has grown from a single community bank into a regional financial institution serving individuals, small businesses and commercial clients. Independent Bank Group became a bank holding company in 1983 and expanded its footprint through organic growth and strategic acquisitions.

The company’s primary business activities encompass retail and commercial banking, including deposit products, consumer and business lending and credit services.