Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Raises Position in Independent Bank Corp. $INDB

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB) by 116.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 86,830 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 46,796 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC owned approximately 0.17% of Independent Bank worth $6,006,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 233.3% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 550 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 385 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in shares of Independent Bank by 296.8% during the second quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 619 shares of the bank’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 463 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 95.1% in the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 638 shares of the bank’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Independent Bank by 100.8% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 755 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 379 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Independent Bank during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

INDB has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Independent Research set a $80.00 target price on Independent Bank in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Independent Bank in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Barclays started coverage on shares of Independent Bank in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $80.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Independent Bank from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $80.00 to $83.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $76.80.

Independent Bank Price Performance

INDB opened at $74.81 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $73.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $69.87. Independent Bank Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $52.15 and a fifty-two week high of $78.17. The firm has a market cap of $3.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.20 and a beta of 0.79.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 16th. The bank reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $243.74 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $242.65 million. Independent Bank had a return on equity of 7.19% and a net margin of 16.64%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Independent Bank Corp. will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Independent Bank Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 7th. Investors of record on Monday, December 29th were issued a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 29th. Independent Bank’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 57.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Independent Bank

In related news, Director Thomas R. Venables sold 405 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.93, for a total value of $29,941.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 20,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,519,779.01. This represents a 1.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Gerard F. Nadeau sold 3,000 shares of Independent Bank stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $210,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 22,395 shares in the company, valued at $1,567,650. The trade was a 11.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 200,405 shares of company stock valued at $13,971,482 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

About Independent Bank

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.