Norwood Financial (NASDAQ:NWFL) Posts Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.01 EPS

Norwood Financial (NASDAQ:NWFL) issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The financial services provider reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.01), FiscalAI reports. Norwood Financial had a return on equity of 12.43% and a net margin of 17.75%.The company had revenue of $29.37 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.10 million.

Here are the key takeaways from Norwood Financial’s conference call:

• Norwood reported a record second quarter with net income of $26.8 million, up 41% year over year, while adjusted EPS and returns on assets/equity also improved meaningfully.
• Net interest margin expanded to 3.9%, up 47 basis points from a year ago, helped mainly by lower deposit costs and the benefits of the repositioned portfolio.
• The company said the Presence Bank integration is now complete, including core system conversion and brand rollout, and management expects the experience to support future acquisition efforts.
• Norwood said it has already earned back the tangible book value dilution from the Presence Bank acquisition two years ahead of estimates, which management framed as evidence of strong earnings power and disciplined M&A.
• Credit quality was pressured by a $22 million borrower bankruptcy, leading to a $700,000 net charge-off and higher provision expense, though management said the outcome is acceptable relative to exposure and the bankruptcy process remains ongoing.

Norwood Financial Trading Down 2.0%

NASDAQ NWFL opened at $30.35 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $30.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $30.14. Norwood Financial has a one year low of $23.70 and a one year high of $32.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $330.51 million, a P/E ratio of 11.20 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.93.

Norwood Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. Norwood Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.23%.

Insider Transactions at Norwood Financial

In other Norwood Financial news, CFO John Martin Mccaffery, Jr. purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $29.44 per share, with a total value of $29,440.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer owned 4,000 shares in the company, valued at $117,760. This represents a 33.33% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders purchased 3,297 shares of company stock valued at $97,483 over the last quarter. 8.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Norwood Financial

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Norwood Financial by 40.1% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 888,812 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $24,931,000 after purchasing an additional 254,259 shares during the period. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norwood Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,567,000. Bulldog Investors LLP increased its position in Norwood Financial by 587.4% in the 4th quarter. Bulldog Investors LLP now owns 64,145 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,799,000 after buying an additional 54,814 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in Norwood Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $648,000. Finally, Citadel Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Norwood Financial during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $605,000. Institutional investors own 28.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on NWFL. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Norwood Financial from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Norwood Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. Finally, Stephens reiterated a “mixed” rating on shares of Norwood Financial in a research report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $33.00.

Norwood Financial Company Profile

Norwood Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Wayne Bank that provides various banking products and services. The company accepts a range of deposit products, including interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing transaction accounts, and statement savings and money market accounts, as well as certificate of deposits. It also provides commercial loans comprising lines of credit, revolving credit, term loans, mortgages, secured lending products, and letter of credit facilities; municipal finance lending; construction loans for commercial construction projects and single-family residences; land loans; construction financing; consumer loans; mortgage lending to finance principal residences and second home dwellings; and indirect dealer financing of new and used automobiles, boats, and recreational vehicles.