New York State Teachers Retirement System Trims Holdings in Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB)

New York State Teachers Retirement System decreased its holdings in Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB) by 0.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 35,685 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 300 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned about 0.08% of Independent Bank worth $2,348,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Boston Trust Walden Corp boosted its position in Independent Bank by 22.1% during the fourth quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 518,119 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $34,097,000 after purchasing an additional 93,901 shares in the last quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 12.3% in the fourth quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC now owns 4,989 shares of the bank’s stock worth $328,000 after purchasing an additional 545 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in Independent Bank during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,463,000. Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning purchased a new position in Independent Bank during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $430,000. Finally, Diversified Trust Co increased its position in shares of Independent Bank by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 10,116 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $666,000 after buying an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Independent Bank Price Performance

INDB stock opened at $48.70 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.99 and a beta of 0.83. The business’s 50-day moving average is $51.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.90. Independent Bank Corp. has a 1 year low of $43.28 and a 1 year high of $68.75.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 18th. The bank reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $177.16 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $176.75 million. Independent Bank had a return on equity of 8.35% and a net margin of 26.02%. Analysts anticipate that Independent Bank Corp. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Independent Bank Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 1st were given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.68%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 28th. This is a positive change from Independent Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Independent Bank’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.07%.

Insider Transactions at Independent Bank

In other news, Director Donna L. Abelli sold 800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.83, for a total transaction of $42,264.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,640 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $614,941.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

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.