Lawrence Seidman Buys 1,930 Shares of Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) Stock

Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BWFG) Director Lawrence Seidman purchased 1,930 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $50.11 per share, with a total value of $96,712.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 217,714 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,909,648.54. The trade was a 0.89% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Bankwell Financial Group Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of BWFG opened at $50.56 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $402.96 million, a PE ratio of 10.15 and a beta of 0.63. The business has a fifty day moving average of $49.80 and a 200 day moving average of $47.98. Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $33.26 and a 52-week high of $53.86. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) last issued its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $30.23 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.47 million. Bankwell Financial Group had a return on equity of 13.31% and a net margin of 18.71%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.35 EPS for the current year.

Bankwell Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 8th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. Bankwell Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.06%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bankwell Financial Group

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Barclays PLC increased its stake in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 1.3% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 24,040 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,064,000 after buying an additional 307 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 38.8% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,124 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 314 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its stake in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 71.8% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,041 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 435 shares during the period. GM Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 0.4% during the first quarter. GM Advisory Group LLC now owns 106,498 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,167,000 after buying an additional 439 shares during the period. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 585.0% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 685 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 585 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 35.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on BWFG shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Bankwell Financial Group from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Bankwell Financial Group from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research report on Monday. Wall Street Zen downgraded Bankwell Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 3rd. Finally, Hovde Group lifted their target price on Bankwell Financial Group from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $52.00.

Bankwell Financial Group Company Profile

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.