Finward Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWD) Downgraded by Hovde Group to “Market Perform”

Finward Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWD) was downgraded by analysts at Hovde Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports.

Finward Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FNWD opened at $29.45 on Monday. Finward Bancorp has a one year low of $23.50 and a one year high of $33.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The firm has a market cap of $127.05 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.41 and a beta of 0.53. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $27.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $29.24.

Finward Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.31. Finward Bancorp had a net margin of 10.85% and a return on equity of 7.91%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Finward Bancorp will post 0.9 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Carolyn M. Burke acquired 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $26.80 per share, with a total value of $26,800.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,800. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Robert W. Youman acquired 1,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $27.76 per share, with a total value of $38,864.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 22,773 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $632,178.48. This represents a 6.55 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders purchased 6,472 shares of company stock worth $174,563. 13.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Finward Bancorp

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of FNWD. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Finward Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth $221,000. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in Finward Bancorp by 37.5% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 15,021 shares of the company’s stock worth $422,000 after acquiring an additional 4,098 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Finward Bancorp by 8.6% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 17,641 shares of the company’s stock worth $496,000 after acquiring an additional 1,393 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Finward Bancorp by 7.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 38,662 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,237,000 after acquiring an additional 2,825 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Finward Bancorp acquired a new stake in shares of Finward Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $4,175,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.59% of the company’s stock.

About Finward Bancorp

Finward Bancorp operates as the holding company for Peoples Bank that provides various banking products and services. The company’s deposit products include non-interest- and interest-bearing demand accounts, savings accounts, money market deposit accounts, certificate accounts, and retirement savings plans.