Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) Shares Pass Above 50 Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BWFG - Get Free Report) shares passed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a fifty day moving average of $33.72 and traded as high as $35.30. Bankwell Financial Group shares last traded at $35.18, with a volume of 14,646 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BWFG has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Hovde Group raised shares of Bankwell Financial Group to a "hold" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $35.00 to $38.50 in a research report on Monday. Wall Street Zen lowered Bankwell Financial Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Bankwell Financial Group from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th.

Bankwell Financial Group Stock Up 1.2%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The company has a 50 day moving average of $33.86 and a 200-day moving average of $31.64. The company has a market cap of $281.35 million, a P/E ratio of 22.77 and a beta of 0.67.

Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $23.57 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.63 million. Bankwell Financial Group had a net margin of 6.33% and a return on equity of 4.60%.

Bankwell Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th were issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. Bankwell Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is 50.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bankwell Financial Group

In related news, EVP Steven H. Brunner sold 807 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.36, for a total value of $26,921.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,548 shares of the company's stock, valued at $51,641.28. This represents a 34.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders bought 1,306 shares of company stock valued at $46,585 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 19.48% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bankwell Financial Group

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BWFG. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Bankwell Financial Group by 35.4% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 30,262 shares of the bank's stock worth $943,000 after acquiring an additional 7,908 shares during the last quarter. GM Advisory Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. GM Advisory Group LLC now owns 90,358 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,815,000 after acquiring an additional 551 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 102.7% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 23,590 shares of the bank's stock worth $735,000 after acquiring an additional 11,952 shares during the period. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 30.2% during the fourth quarter. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC now owns 174,584 shares of the bank's stock valued at $5,438,000 after purchasing an additional 40,458 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Bankwell Financial Group by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 148,035 shares of the bank's stock valued at $4,612,000 after purchasing an additional 693 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 35.80% of the company's stock.

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.