Carl Porto Acquires 370 Shares of Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) Stock

Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BWFG) Director Carl Porto purchased 370 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $53.70 per share, with a total value of $19,869.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 22,070 shares in the company, valued at $1,185,159. The trade was a 1.71% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Bankwell Financial Group Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:BWFG opened at $55.75 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $33.85 and a 12 month high of $56.40. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $51.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $49.12. The company has a market cap of $444.49 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.19 and a beta of 0.62.

Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $1.41 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.18. Bankwell Financial Group had a net margin of 18.71% and a return on equity of 13.31%. The firm had revenue of $30.23 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.47 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Bankwell Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Bankwell Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Bankwell Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, May 3rd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Bankwell Financial Group from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Bankwell Financial Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $52.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bankwell Financial Group

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Bankwell Financial Group during the third quarter worth approximately $4,280,000. Legato Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bankwell Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $443,000. Daytona Street Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bankwell Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $229,000. GM Advisory Group LLC increased its position in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 0.5% during the third quarter. GM Advisory Group LLC now owns 105,587 shares of the bank’s stock worth $4,672,000 after acquiring an additional 521 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position 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 worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 314 shares during the period. 35.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.