ProShare Advisors LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB)

ProShare Advisors LLC reduced its position in Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB) by 4.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 119,937 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 4,968 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC’s holdings in Independent Bank were worth $7,699,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Venturi Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Independent Bank in the fourth quarter valued at $62,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Independent Bank by 105.4% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,056 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $68,000 after acquiring an additional 542 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Independent Bank by 810.2% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,338 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $86,000 after acquiring an additional 1,191 shares during the period. KBC Group NV increased its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 34.5% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,911 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $123,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Relyea Zuckerberg Hanson LLC acquired a new position in Independent Bank in the 4th quarter worth about $250,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Independent Bank Price Performance

Shares of Independent Bank stock opened at $64.70 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.31 and a beta of 0.82. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $60.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $65.24. Independent Bank Corp. has a 12 month low of $45.11 and a 12 month high of $77.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The bank reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.18 by ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $178.04 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $175.03 million. Independent Bank had a return on equity of 6.57% and a net margin of 19.58%. As a group, analysts predict 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. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were given a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.65%. This is a boost from Independent Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. Independent Bank’s dividend payout ratio is 53.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on INDB shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on Independent Bank from $80.00 to $72.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Independent Bank from $74.00 to $63.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note 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 report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Independent Bank from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, April 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Independent Bank presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $71.00.

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.