Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BWFG) Short Interest Update

Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BWFG) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 103,000 shares, an increase of 10.5% from the December 15th total of 93,200 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 15,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 6.6 days. Approximately 1.7% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Bankwell Financial Group Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:BWFG traded up $0.53 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $30.05. 17,154 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,249. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $31.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $29.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06. Bankwell Financial Group has a 52-week low of $22.47 and a 52-week high of $35.25. The company has a market capitalization of $236.19 million, a PE ratio of 15.41 and a beta of 0.88.

Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The bank reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.08) by $0.32. The company had revenue of $49.35 million during the quarter. Bankwell Financial Group had a return on equity of 5.74% and a net margin of 7.77%.

Bankwell Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th were given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Bankwell Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 41.03%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Bankwell Financial Group from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th.

Insider Activity

In other Bankwell Financial Group news, Director Darryl Demos acquired 2,290 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $32.61 per share, for a total transaction of $74,676.90. Following the transaction, the director now owns 8,156 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $265,967.16. The trade was a 39.04 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Steven H. Brunner sold 1,330 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.98, for a total value of $43,863.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 3,002 shares in the company, valued at $99,005.96. This represents a 30.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have bought 2,975 shares of company stock worth $97,217 over the last 90 days. 19.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in Bankwell Financial Group by 60.9% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,890 shares of the bank’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 715 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 164.5% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 11,638 shares of the bank’s stock worth $349,000 after buying an additional 7,238 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 19,642 shares of the bank’s stock worth $588,000 after acquiring an additional 938 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 47.7% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 20,781 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $623,000 after acquiring an additional 6,710 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Bankwell Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $624,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 35.80% of the company’s stock.

Bankwell Financial Group Company Profile

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.