Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BWFG) Shares Acquired by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BWFG - Free Report) by 102.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 23,590 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 11,952 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned approximately 0.30% of Bankwell Financial Group worth $735,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BWFG. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 47.7% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 20,781 shares of the bank's stock worth $623,000 after buying an additional 6,710 shares during the last quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Bankwell Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth about $624,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in Bankwell Financial Group by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 20,560 shares of the bank's stock worth $640,000 after purchasing an additional 918 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in Bankwell Financial Group by 35.4% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 30,262 shares of the bank's stock valued at $943,000 after purchasing an additional 7,908 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 78,017 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,337,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. 35.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bankwell Financial Group Trading Up 2.8 %

BWFG stock traded up $0.95 during trading on Friday, reaching $34.45. 10,880 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 14,512. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $271.78 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.20 and a beta of 0.60. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $30.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $30.67. Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $22.80 and a 1 year high of $35.25.

Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $23.57 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.63 million. Bankwell Financial Group had a return on equity of 3.48% and a net margin of 4.76%.

Bankwell Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. Bankwell Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 50.96%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on BWFG shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Bankwell Financial Group from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday. StockNews.com upgraded Bankwell Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Steven H. Brunner sold 2,198 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.69, for a total transaction of $67,456.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 604 shares in the company, valued at $18,536.76. This trade represents a 78.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Matt Mcneill sold 1,908 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.43, for a total value of $61,876.44. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 40,353 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,308,647.79. The trade was a 4.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 6,754 shares of company stock valued at $214,683. Company insiders own 19.48% of the company's stock.

About Bankwell Financial Group

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.