Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) Director Lawrence Seidman Buys 376 Shares

Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BWFG) Director Lawrence Seidman purchased 376 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $47.64 per share, for a total transaction of $17,912.64. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 4,151 shares in the company, valued at $197,753.64. The trade was a 9.96% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Bankwell Financial Group Price Performance

BWFG opened at $47.65 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $375.48 million, a PE ratio of 13.20 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $26.39 and a 1 year high of $48.95. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $44.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $40.97.

Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The bank reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.25. Bankwell Financial Group had a net margin of 14.10% and a return on equity of 10.18%. The firm had revenue of $28.48 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.26 million.

Bankwell Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 10th were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 10th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. Bankwell Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.16%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BWFG. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in Bankwell Financial Group by 585.0% during the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 685 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 585 shares during the period. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 70.7% in the second quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 722 shares of the bank’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its position in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 71.8% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,041 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 435 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 38.8% during the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey bought a new position in Bankwell Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth $50,000. 35.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BWFG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Bankwell Financial Group from $48.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Bankwell Financial Group in a research note on Monday, December 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Bankwell Financial Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $47.50.

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.