Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 36,600 Shares of Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB)

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its position in shares of Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB) by 15.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 200,287 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 36,600 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Independent Bank were worth $11,843,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of Independent Bank by 106.0% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 25,077 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,483,000 after buying an additional 12,904 shares during the period. Centiva Capital LP bought a new stake in Independent Bank during the third quarter valued at $535,000. Eastern Bank grew its holdings in Independent Bank by 454.7% during the 3rd quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 23,237 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,374,000 after acquiring an additional 19,048 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Independent Bank in the 2nd quarter worth about $5,405,000. Finally, BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 11.1% in the 3rd quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 283,661 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $16,773,000 after purchasing an additional 28,373 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

INDB has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Independent Bank from $77.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Independent Bank from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Raymond James upgraded shares of Independent Bank from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $74.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $78.00.

Independent Bank Trading Down 1.4 %

NASDAQ INDB opened at $65.00 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $68.85 and its 200-day moving average is $61.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.13 and a beta of 0.76. Independent Bank Corp. has a one year low of $45.11 and a one year high of $77.23.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The bank reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.02. Independent Bank had a return on equity of 6.74% and a net margin of 20.26%. The firm had revenue of $250.07 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $173.24 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.38 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Independent Bank Corp. will post 4.5 EPS for the current year.

Independent Bank Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 30th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 30th. Independent Bank’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.57%.

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.