StockNews.com Begins Coverage on Independent Bank (NASDAQ:IBCP)

StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Independent Bank (NASDAQ:IBCP – Get Rating) in a research report report published on Thursday. The brokerage issued a hold rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on IBCP. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered Independent Bank from an outperform rating to a market perform rating and set a $26.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Monday, December 12th. DA Davidson upped their price target on Independent Bank to $24.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 16th.

Independent Bank Trading Down 5.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ IBCP traded down $0.99 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $18.38. 224,474 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 87,482. Independent Bank has a 1 year low of $17.58 and a 1 year high of $24.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $388.37 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.19 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The business has a 50 day moving average of $22.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $22.22.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:IBCP – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.72 by ($0.01). Independent Bank had a net margin of 27.43% and a return on equity of 18.54%. The company had revenue of $52.07 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $53.40 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Independent Bank will post 2.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Independent Bank Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 16th were given a $0.23 dividend. This is a positive change from Independent Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 15th. Independent Bank’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.98%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Gavin A. Mohr bought 1,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 30th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $21.68 per share, with a total value of $34,688.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,655 shares in the company, valued at approximately $252,680.40. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Independent Bank news, SVP James J. Twarozynski sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.31, for a total value of $44,620.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,109 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $203,221.79. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Gavin A. Mohr bought 1,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 30th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $21.68 per share, for a total transaction of $34,688.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,655 shares in the company, valued at $252,680.40. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 5.45% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in IBCP. Swiss National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 47,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,052,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 28.6% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 101,773 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,239,000 after acquiring an additional 22,663 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 11.0% during the 1st quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 19,073 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $421,000 after acquiring an additional 1,888 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 44.8% during the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 10,680 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $235,000 after acquiring an additional 3,305 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BlackRock Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 6.1% during the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 2,731,307 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $60,089,000 after acquiring an additional 156,812 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.73% of the company’s stock.

Independent Bank Company Profile

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Independent Bank Corp. operates as a bank holding company, which engages in the provision of financial services. It offers commercial banking, mortgage lending, investments, and title services. The company was founded in 1864 and is headquartered in Grand Rapids, MI.