Independent Bank (NASDAQ:IBCP) Sets New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Independent Bank Corporation (NASDAQ:IBCP)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $39.24 and last traded at $38.9080, with a volume of 7493 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $38.20.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on IBCP shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Independent Bank in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Independent Bank from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Hovde Group upgraded shares of Independent Bank from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $36.00 to $41.00 in a research note on Friday, July 10th. DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of Independent Bank from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Independent Bank from $37.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $39.50.

Independent Bank Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $35.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $34.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92. The stock has a market cap of $792.45 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.18 and a beta of 0.71.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:IBCP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.06. Independent Bank had a return on equity of 14.31% and a net margin of 22.32%.The company had revenue of $63.24 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $60.08 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.81 EPS. Analysts expect that Independent Bank Corporation will post 3.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Independent Bank Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 4th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Independent Bank’s payout ratio is presently 32.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Stefanie M. Kimball sold 1,400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.41, for a total value of $48,174.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 64,327 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,213,492.07. This represents a 2.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 5.91% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Independent Bank

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IBCP. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Independent Bank by 2,062.9% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 757 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 722 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Independent Bank during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Independent Bank during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. acquired a new position in shares of Independent Bank during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Independent Bank by 45.4% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 961 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. 79.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Independent Bank

Independent Bank Corporation (NASDAQ: IBCP) is a bank holding company headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Through its primary subsidiary, Independent Bank, the company offers a full range of commercial and personal banking services designed to meet the needs of individuals, small businesses and corporate clients. The company’s offerings span traditional branch-based banking as well as digital and mobile platforms.

Independent Bank provides deposit products such as checking and savings accounts, money market accounts and certificates of deposit.