Norwood Financial (NASDAQ:NWFL) Downgraded to Sell Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Norwood Financial (NASDAQ:NWFL) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report released on Wednesday.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on NWFL. Janney Montgomery Scott assumed coverage on Norwood Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $31.00 price target on the stock. Piper Sandler began coverage on Norwood Financial in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $28.00 target price on the stock.

Norwood Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NWFL opened at $25.82 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $27.99 and a 200 day moving average of $27.90. The company has a market capitalization of $208.88 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.24 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Norwood Financial has a 52 week low of $23.50 and a 52 week high of $34.50.

Norwood Financial (NASDAQ:NWFL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The financial services provider reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by ($0.17). Norwood Financial had a return on equity of 6.94% and a net margin of 10.90%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Norwood Financial will post 2.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norwood Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be given a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.80%. This is an increase from Norwood Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 15th. Norwood Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norwood Financial

In other news, Director Ronald R. Schmalzle bought 7,692 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 19th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $26.00 per share, with a total value of $199,992.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 15,510 shares in the company, valued at $403,260. The trade was a 98.39 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 9.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Norwood Financial

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NWFL. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Norwood Financial by 258.7% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 84,919 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,155,000 after acquiring an additional 61,247 shares in the last quarter. Code Waechter LLC purchased a new position in Norwood Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $815,000. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Norwood Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $200,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Norwood Financial by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 20,537 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $566,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its holdings in Norwood Financial by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 99,889 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,755,000 after acquiring an additional 2,402 shares during the last quarter. 28.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.