Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) Lowered to Sell at StockNews.com

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report released on Friday.

INDB has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Independent Bank from $64.00 to $60.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Seaport Res Ptn raised Independent Bank from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd.

Independent Bank Stock Performance

INDB stock traded up $0.72 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $60.03. 198,279 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 285,920. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $53.98 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $52.35. Independent Bank has a one year low of $44.63 and a one year high of $68.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.59 and a beta of 0.77.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The bank reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $244.19 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $169.07 million. Independent Bank had a net margin of 22.42% and a return on equity of 7.41%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.42 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Independent Bank will post 4.75 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of INDB. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Independent Bank by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 509,236 shares of the bank’s stock worth $33,513,000 after purchasing an additional 25,664 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in Independent Bank in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,169,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in Independent Bank by 89.8% in the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 23,769 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,236,000 after acquiring an additional 11,244 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its holdings in Independent Bank by 462.0% in the first quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 52,784 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,746,000 after acquiring an additional 43,391 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in Independent Bank in the first quarter valued at approximately $461,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

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.