GW&K Investment Management LLC Sells 28,781 Shares of Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB)

GW&K Investment Management LLC decreased its position in Independent Bank Corp. (NASDAQ:INDB) by 6.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 395,493 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 28,781 shares during the period. GW&K Investment Management LLC owned 0.90% of Independent Bank worth $26,027,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Sachetta LLC bought a new stake in shares of Independent Bank in the 4th quarter worth approximately $56,000. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of Independent Bank by 13.5% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,598 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $128,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC bought a new position in Independent Bank in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $217,000. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC purchased a new position in Independent Bank in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $217,000. Finally, M&T Bank Corp bought a new stake in Independent Bank during the 3rd quarter valued at $237,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Donna L. Abelli sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.83, for a total transaction of $42,264.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,640 shares in the company, valued at $614,941.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Independent Bank Price Performance

Independent Bank stock traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $53.17. 5,900 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 276,177. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $50.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $55.46. Independent Bank Corp. has a 52-week low of $43.28 and a 52-week high of $68.75. The company has a market cap of $2.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.28 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.96.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:INDB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The bank reported $1.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.15 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $167.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $171.80 million. Independent Bank had a net margin of 23.97% and a return on equity of 7.85%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Independent Bank Corp. will post 4.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Independent Bank Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Investors of record on Monday, April 1st were given a $0.57 dividend. This is an increase from Independent Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 28th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.29%. Independent Bank’s payout ratio is presently 44.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

INDB has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. TheStreet lowered Independent Bank from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of Independent Bank from $64.00 to $60.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd.

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.