Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) Price Target Raised to $53.00

Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) had its price objective upped by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $48.00 to $53.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the bank’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on BWFG. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Bankwell Financial Group in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Hovde Group boosted their price target on Bankwell Financial Group from $38.50 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Bankwell Financial Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.50.

Bankwell Financial Group Price Performance

NASDAQ:BWFG opened at $43.03 on Monday. Bankwell Financial Group has a 1-year low of $26.39 and a 1-year high of $48.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.50 and a 200 day simple moving average of $38.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $338.65 million, a PE ratio of 11.92 and a beta of 0.68.

Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The bank reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.25. Bankwell Financial Group had a return on equity of 10.34% and a net margin of 14.10%.The business had revenue of $27.76 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.26 million.

Bankwell Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 10th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 10th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Bankwell Financial Group’s payout ratio is 22.16%.

Insider Transactions at Bankwell Financial Group

In other news, Director Lawrence B. Seidman bought 17,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $45.91 per share, with a total value of $780,470.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 194,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,929,908.19. This trade represents a 9.58% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Todd Lampert sold 3,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.29, for a total value of $139,557.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 13,533 shares in the company, valued at $572,310.57. The trade was a 19.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have bought 29,083 shares of company stock valued at $1,316,383 and have sold 8,017 shares valued at $335,036. 19.48% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bankwell Financial Group

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. raised its position in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 70.7% during the second quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 722 shares of the bank’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in Bankwell Financial Group by 38.8% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,124 shares of the bank’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 314 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its holdings in Bankwell Financial Group by 71.8% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,041 shares of the bank’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 435 shares in the last quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey bought a new stake in Bankwell Financial Group during the second quarter worth $50,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Bankwell Financial Group during the second quarter worth $63,000. 35.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bankwell Financial Group Company Profile

Bankwell Financial Group, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Bankwell Bank that provides various banking services for individual and commercial customers. It offers various traditional depository products, including checking, savings, money market, and certificates of deposit. The company also provides first mortgage loans secured by one-to-four family owner occupied residential properties for personal use; home equity loans and home equity lines of credit secured by owner occupied one-to-four family residential properties; loans secured by commercial real estate, multi-family dwellings, owner-occupied commercial real estate, and investor-owned one-to-four family dwellings; commercial construction loans for commercial development projects, including apartment buildings and condominiums, as well as office buildings, retail, and other income producing properties; land loans; commercial business loans secured by assignments of corporate assets and personal guarantees of the business owners; loans to finance insurance premiums; overdraft lines of credit; and unsecured personal loans.