Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) Stock Rating Upgraded by Zacks Research

Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) was upgraded by Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Bankwell Financial Group from $62.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Bankwell Financial Group from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Bankwell Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, May 3rd. Finally, Hovde Group boosted their price objective on shares of Bankwell Financial Group from $51.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bankwell Financial Group presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $67.50.

Bankwell Financial Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BWFG opened at $66.86 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $532.87 million, a P/E ratio of 12.50 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $56.78 and its 200-day moving average is $51.83. Bankwell Financial Group has a 1-year low of $38.25 and a 1-year high of $67.02.

Bankwell Financial Group (NASDAQ:BWFG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The bank reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $32.78 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.63 million. Bankwell Financial Group had a net margin of 19.80% and a return on equity of 14.19%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Bankwell Financial Group will post 5.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bankwell Financial Group

In other news, Director Lawrence B. Seidman purchased 3,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $51.87 per share, for a total transaction of $171,171.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 218,756 shares in the company, valued at $11,346,873.72. This trade represents a 1.53% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Todd Lampert sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.59, for a total transaction of $187,565.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 12,366 shares in the company, valued at $662,693.94. This trade represents a 22.06% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have acquired 7,156 shares of company stock worth $370,525 and have sold 8,909 shares worth $476,575. 20.98% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bankwell Financial Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BWFG. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in Bankwell Financial Group by 585.0% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 685 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 585 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 38.8% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,124 shares of the bank’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 314 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Bankwell Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $63,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in shares of Bankwell Financial Group by 523.4% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,995 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 1,675 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Bankwell Financial Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $146,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 35.80% of the company’s stock.

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.