Independent Bank Corporation (NASDAQ:IBCP) Short Interest Up 37.2% in March

Independent Bank Corporation (NASDAQ:IBCP) was the target of a large increase in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 644,457 shares, an increase of 37.2% from the March 15th total of 469,885 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 297,572 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.2 days. Approximately 3.3% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Independent Bank

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IBCP. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in Independent Bank during the 1st quarter valued at $287,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in Independent Bank by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 11,816 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $364,000 after buying an additional 464 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in Independent Bank by 469.8% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 130,953 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,032,000 after buying an additional 107,972 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in Independent Bank by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 298,986 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,206,000 after buying an additional 12,855 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in Independent Bank by 24.4% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 71,115 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,190,000 after buying an additional 13,926 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.43% of the company’s stock.

Independent Bank Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of Independent Bank stock traded down $0.36 during trading on Thursday, reaching $34.00. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 174,139 shares, compared to its average volume of 240,834. Independent Bank has a 52-week low of $29.43 and a 52-week high of $37.39. The company has a market cap of $700.06 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.37 and a beta of 0.76. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $34.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $33.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Independent Bank (NASDAQ:IBCP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.06. Independent Bank had a net margin of 21.73% and a return on equity of 14.20%. The company had revenue of $46.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $50.52 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Independent Bank will post 3.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Independent Bank Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 3rd were paid a $0.28 dividend. This is a positive change from Independent Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Independent Bank’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on IBCP shares. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $36.00 price target on shares of Independent Bank in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Independent Bank from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Independent Bank from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $36.67.

Independent Bank Company Profile

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.