Finward Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWD) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at Stephens

Key Points

• Stephens initiated coverage with an overweight rating and a $41 price target, implying roughly 14.8% upside from the recent share price (~$35.71).
• Finward missed its latest quarter, reporting $0.46 EPS vs. $0.61 expected and revenue of $16.52M vs. $18.25M expected, with a net margin of 8% and ROE of 5.15%.
• The company has a market cap of $154.5M and a P/E of 19.3; the stock carries an average analyst rating of "Moderate Buy" and about 26.6% institutional ownership.

Equities research analysts at Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Finward Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWD - Get Free Report) in a note issued to investors on Friday. The firm set an "overweight" rating and a $41.00 price target on the stock. Stephens' target price points to a potential upside of 14.83% from the stock's current price.

Separately, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Finward Bancorp in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $41.00.

Finward Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FNWD traded down $0.60 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $35.71. The stock had a trading volume of 2,439 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,951. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The company has a market cap of $154.50 million, a P/E ratio of 19.31 and a beta of 0.33. Finward Bancorp has a 1 year low of $26.46 and a 1 year high of $39.99. The business's 50 day moving average price is $37.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $35.49.

Finward Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.61 by ($0.15). Finward Bancorp had a net margin of 8.00% and a return on equity of 5.15%. The firm had revenue of $16.52 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.25 million. Research analysts expect that Finward Bancorp will post 0.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Finward Bancorp

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of Finward Bancorp by 49.0% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 897 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 295 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in Finward Bancorp by 98.9% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,291 shares of the company's stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 642 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. purchased a new position in Finward Bancorp during the third quarter worth $43,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. bought a new position in Finward Bancorp during the second quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in Finward Bancorp by 5,428.1% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,769 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 1,737 shares during the last quarter. 26.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Finward Bancorp Company Profile

Finward Bancorp NASDAQ: FNWD is the bank holding company for Finward Bank, a community-focused financial institution serving businesses and individuals across Pennsylvania and Delaware. Through a network of full-service branches and a robust digital banking platform, Finward Bank delivers a range of personal and commercial banking solutions designed to meet the needs of local customers.

The company's core offerings include deposit products such as checking accounts, savings accounts and time deposits, as well as a variety of lending solutions.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.