Jeffrey Dunne Acquires 261 Shares of Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) Stock

Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BWFG) Director Jeffrey Dunne acquired 261 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $67.11 per share, for a total transaction of $17,515.71. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $428,228.91. The trade was a 4.26% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Bankwell Financial Group Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of Bankwell Financial Group stock opened at $66.16 on Wednesday. Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $40.44 and a twelve month high of $69.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The company’s 50 day moving average is $64.06 and its 200 day moving average is $55.75. The company has a market cap of $527.30 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.37 and a beta of 0.58.

Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The bank reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $32.78 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.63 million. Bankwell Financial Group had a return on equity of 13.94% and a net margin of 19.80%. Research analysts anticipate that Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.7 EPS for the current year.

Bankwell Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 10th. Bankwell Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 14.95%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bankwell Financial Group

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Bankwell Financial Group in the second quarter worth approximately $28,974,000. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in Bankwell Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth $1,891,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in Bankwell Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth $1,377,000. Corient Private Wealth LP bought a new stake in Bankwell Financial Group during the second quarter valued at about $1,287,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in shares of Bankwell Financial Group in the second quarter valued at about $1,283,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 35.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Hovde Group boosted their target price on shares of Bankwell Financial Group from $51.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Bankwell Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Bankwell Financial Group from $62.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Bankwell Financial Group from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Bankwell Financial Group currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.50.

About Bankwell Financial Group

Bankwell Financial Group, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in New Canaan, Connecticut, and serves as the parent company of Bankwell Bank. Bankwell Bank provides commercial, business and personal banking services, with branch locations primarily across Fairfield and New Haven counties in Connecticut, along with a New York presence.

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.