Finward Bancorp $FNWD Shares Bought by PL Capital Advisors LLC

Key Points

• PL Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Finward Bancorp by 11.2%, now owning 395,716 shares valued at approximately $11.5 million.
• Finward Bancorp recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.12 per share, with a dividend yield of 1.6% and a payout ratio of 38.71%.
• The company reported earnings of $0.50 per share, beating analyst expectations, and has a market cap of approximately $127.92 million.

PL Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Finward Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWD - Free Report) by 11.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 395,716 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 40,000 shares during the quarter. Finward Bancorp comprises 3.9% of PL Capital Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. PL Capital Advisors LLC owned about 9.15% of Finward Bancorp worth $11,515,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Separately, Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Finward Bancorp by 37.5% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 15,021 shares of the company's stock valued at $422,000 after purchasing an additional 4,098 shares in the last quarter. 26.59% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on FNWD shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Finward Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Stephens upped their price target on shares of Finward Bancorp from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $32.50.

Finward Bancorp Price Performance

FNWD traded up $1.09 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $30.43. 37,009 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 80,639. The firm has a market capitalization of $131.61 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.54 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Finward Bancorp has a one year low of $26.12 and a one year high of $33.50. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $28.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $28.65.

Finward Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $16.63 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.85 million. Finward Bancorp had a net margin of 5.23% and a return on equity of 3.45%. As a group, research analysts predict that Finward Bancorp will post 0.9 EPS for the current year.

Finward Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Finward Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.71%.

Finward Bancorp Company Profile

Finward Bancorp operates as the holding company for Peoples Bank that provides various banking products and services. The company's deposit products include non-interest- and interest-bearing demand accounts, savings accounts, money market deposit accounts, certificate accounts, and retirement savings plans.