Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) Price Target Raised to $72.00

Key Points

• Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Bankwell Financial Group’s price target to $72 from $62 and maintained an “outperform” rating, implying 11.85% potential upside. Analysts collectively rate the stock “Moderate Buy,” with an average target of $67.50.
• Bankwell reported quarterly EPS of $1.52, beating the $1.29 consensus estimate, while revenue of $32.78 million also exceeded expectations of $30.63 million.
• BWFG shares opened at $64.37, near their 12-month high of $64.61, after gaining above both their 50-day and 200-day moving averages. Institutional investors own 35.80% of the company, while insiders own 20.98%.

Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG - Get Free Report) had its target price upped by equities research analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $62.00 to $72.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "outperform" rating on the bank's stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods' target price points to a potential upside of 11.85% from the stock's current price.

BWFG has been the subject of several other reports. Hovde Group upped their target price on shares of Bankwell Financial Group from $51.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Bankwell Financial Group from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Bankwell Financial Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, May 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $67.50.

Bankwell Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BWFG opened at $64.37 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The business's 50 day moving average is $56.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $51.69. The company has a market cap of $513.22 million, a P/E ratio of 12.03 and a beta of 0.61. Bankwell Financial Group has a 12 month low of $38.20 and a 12 month high of $64.61.

Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The bank reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $32.78 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $30.63 million. Bankwell Financial Group had a return on equity of 14.19% and a net margin of 19.80%. On average, equities analysts expect that Bankwell Financial Group will post 5.35 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Ryan Jason Hildebrand sold 1,088 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.48, for a total value of $63,626.24. Following the sale, the insider owned 2,246 shares of the company's stock, valued at $131,346.08. The trade was a 32.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lawrence B. Seidman purchased 3,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $51.87 per share, with a total value of $171,171.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 218,756 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,346,873.72. This represents a 1.53% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have acquired 7,156 shares of company stock valued at $370,525 and have sold 8,909 shares valued at $476,575. 20.98% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bankwell Financial Group

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 24,040 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,064,000 after buying an additional 307 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake 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 acquiring an additional 314 shares in the last quarter. GM Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 0.4% during the first quarter. GM Advisory Group LLC now owns 106,498 shares of the bank's stock valued at $5,167,000 after acquiring an additional 439 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 585.0% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 685 shares of the bank's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 585 shares during the period. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 21,262 shares of the bank's stock valued at $642,000 after purchasing an additional 702 shares in the last quarter. 35.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Bankwell Financial Group

Bankwell Financial Group, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in New Canaan, Connecticut, and serves as the parent company of Bankwell Bank. Bankwell Bank provides commercial, business and personal banking services, with branch locations primarily across Fairfield and New Haven counties in Connecticut, along with a New York presence.

The company’s deposit offerings include checking, savings and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposit, all supported by an online and mobile banking platform for convenient account access.

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