Norwood Financial (NASDAQ:NWFL) Upgraded to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Norwood Financial (NASDAQ:NWFL) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on NWFL. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Norwood Financial in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Stephens boosted their price objective on Norwood Financial from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $37.00.

Norwood Financial Trading Down 0.1%

NWFL traded down $0.03 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $35.96. 76,126 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 63,857. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $34.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $32.01. Norwood Financial has a one year low of $26.83 and a one year high of $37.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $392.32 million, a P/E ratio of 11.64 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91.

Norwood Financial (NASDAQ:NWFL) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $30.93 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.00 million. Norwood Financial had a net margin of 19.67% and a return on equity of 13.39%. As a group, analysts forecast that Norwood Financial will post 3.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norwood Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 15th were paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. Norwood Financial’s payout ratio is presently 41.42%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Vincent O’bell sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.52, for a total transaction of $103,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 4,392 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $151,611.84. This trade represents a 40.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 8.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NWFL. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Norwood Financial during the 2nd quarter worth about $24,960,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in shares of Norwood Financial during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $5,603,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Norwood Financial during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,288,000. Bulldog Investors LLP raised its stake in shares of Norwood Financial by 165.0% during the 1st quarter. Bulldog Investors LLP now owns 170,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,001,000 after purchasing an additional 105,855 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Norwood Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,281,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 28.08% of the company’s stock.

Norwood Financial Company Profile

Norwood Financial Corporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Honesdale, Pennsylvania. Its principal subsidiary, Wayne Bank, provides community banking services to individuals, businesses and organizations. Wayne Bank offers deposit accounts, consumer and commercial loans, mortgages, and other lending services, along with digital banking. The company also provides trust and wealth management services. Through its branch network, Norwood Financial serves communities in northeastern Pennsylvania and parts of New York.