Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) Upgraded to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) from "hold" to "buy", joining other analysts who have raised targets (Keefe, Bruyette & Woods to $55) and leaving the consensus as a Moderate Buy with an average target of $52.
• The bank beat estimates with quarterly EPS of $1.41 vs. $1.23 expected, posted a 13.53% ROE and 18.71% net margin, and the stock trades around $50.56 with a P/E of 10.15 and a market cap of about $403 million.
• Company insiders (including the CEO and EVP) sold shares on Feb. 9, but insiders still own roughly 20.98% of shares while institutional investors hold about 35.8%.

Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report issued on Saturday.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on BWFG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Bankwell Financial Group from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Bankwell Financial Group in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Hovde Group lifted their target price on Bankwell Financial Group from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Bankwell Financial Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $52.00.

Bankwell Financial Group Price Performance

NASDAQ:BWFG opened at $50.56 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $48.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $47.13. The firm has a market cap of $402.96 million, a P/E ratio of 10.15 and a beta of 0.62. Bankwell Financial Group has a 52-week low of $31.50 and a 52-week high of $53.86. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $30.23 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.47 million. Bankwell Financial Group had a return on equity of 13.53% and a net margin of 18.71%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Bankwell Financial Group will post 5.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Bankwell Financial Group

In other news, EVP Christine Chivily sold 1,985 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.80, for a total transaction of $98,853.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 16,186 shares in the company, valued at approximately $806,062.80. The trade was a 10.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christopher R. Gruseke sold 5,056 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.79, for a total value of $251,738.24. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 172,147 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,571,199.13. This represents a 2.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders acquired 26,816 shares of company stock worth $1,256,874 and sold 11,897 shares worth $592,523. Company insiders own 20.98% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BWFG. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in 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. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in Bankwell Financial Group during the first quarter worth $250,000. Strs Ohio acquired a new position in Bankwell Financial Group during the first quarter worth $148,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Bankwell Financial Group by 5.4% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 159,384 shares of the bank's stock worth $5,744,000 after acquiring an additional 8,178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in Bankwell Financial Group by 15.2% during the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 10,119 shares of the bank's stock worth $365,000 after acquiring an additional 1,335 shares in the last quarter. 35.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Bankwell Financial Group

Bankwell Financial Group, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Westchester, Illinois, and serves as the parent of Bankwell Bank. Through its subsidiary, the company provides a full suite of banking products and services designed for both individual consumers and small‐ to mid‐sized businesses. Bankwell Bank operates multiple branches across suburban Cook and Lake counties, focusing on personalized service and local decision‐making.

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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