Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) Shares Pass Above 50 Day Moving Average on Insider Selling

Key Points

• Bankwell Financial Group's shares have exceeded their 50-day moving average of $38.99, reaching a high of $42.72, driven by insider buying activity.
• The company reported earnings of $1.15 per share, significantly outperforming analysts' expectations, which forecasted $0.87, alongside a revenue of $47.14 million for the quarter.
• Bankwell Financial Group announced a quarterly dividend of $0.20, resulting in a 1.9% yield, with a payout ratio of 31.01%.

Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BWFG - Get Free Report)'s share price passed above its 50-day moving average during trading on Monday following insider buying activity. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $38.99 and traded as high as $42.72. Bankwell Financial Group shares last traded at $42.28, with a volume of 17,184 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Hovde Group lifted their price objective on Bankwell Financial Group from $38.50 to $42.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Raymond James Financial began coverage on Bankwell Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Bankwell Financial Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $42.00.

Bankwell Financial Group Price Performance

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 business has a 50-day moving average price of $38.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $34.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $332.74 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.39 and a beta of 0.71.

Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The bank reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.28. Bankwell Financial Group had a return on equity of 7.44% and a net margin of 10.27%.The business had revenue of $47.14 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $24.20 million.

Bankwell Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th were given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. Bankwell Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.01%.

Institutional Trading of Bankwell Financial Group

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. boosted its stake in Bankwell Financial Group by 70.7% during the 2nd quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 722 shares of the bank's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 38.8% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,124 shares of the bank's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 314 shares in the last quarter. GM Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 0.6% during the second quarter. GM Advisory Group LLC now owns 105,066 shares of the bank's stock worth $3,786,000 after acquiring an additional 589 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 3.4% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 21,262 shares of the bank's stock worth $642,000 after acquiring an additional 702 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 1.8% during the second quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 47,079 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,696,000 after acquiring an additional 815 shares in the last quarter. 35.80% of the stock is currently 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.

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