JPMorgan Chase & Co. Lowers Stock Holdings in Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut its position in Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB) by 10.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 304,148 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 34,492 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Independent Bank were worth $19,523,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of INDB. Venturi Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Independent Bank during the 4th quarter valued at about $62,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Independent Bank by 105.4% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,056 shares of the bank’s stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 542 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 34.5% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,911 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $123,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares during the period. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 364.9% in the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 2,213 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $142,000 after purchasing an additional 1,737 shares during the period. Finally, Relyea Zuckerberg Hanson LLC acquired a new position in shares of Independent Bank in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $250,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Independent Bank Price Performance

Shares of INDB opened at $54.34 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.02 and a beta of 0.84. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $64.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $65.42. Independent Bank Corp. has a twelve month low of $45.11 and a twelve month high of $77.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The bank reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.16 by $0.05. Independent Bank had a return on equity of 6.57% and a net margin of 19.58%. Equities analysts forecast that Independent Bank Corp. will post 5.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Independent Bank Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.59 per share. This is a boost from Independent Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.34%. Independent Bank’s payout ratio is presently 52.21%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on INDB shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Independent Bank from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Independent Bank from $82.00 to $80.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Raymond James reissued a “strong-buy” rating and set a $78.00 target price (up from $74.00) on shares of Independent Bank in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st.

Insider Activity at Independent Bank

In other Independent Bank news, Director Donna L. Abelli sold 640 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.03, for a total transaction of $44,819.20. Following the sale, the director now owns 12,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $876,495.48. This trade represents a 4.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.87% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.