Significant Decline in Short Interest for Norwood Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:NWFL)

Norwood Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:NWFL - Get Free Report) experienced a substantial reduction in short interest during December. As of December 15th, the total short interest amounted to 33,400 shares, reflecting a notable decrease of 26.3% from the previous total of 45,300 shares recorded on November 30th. Currently, approximately 0.4% of the company's shares are reported as being short sold. Given the average daily trading volume of 11,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio now stands at 2.8 days.

Insider Activity at Norwood Financial

Recently, significant insider activity was observed at Norwood Financial. On December 19th, Director Ronald R. Schmalzle purchased 7,692 shares at an average price of $26.00 each, resulting in a total transaction value of $199,992. Following this acquisition, the director's holdings in the company increased to 15,510 shares, valued at approximately $403,260. This transaction indicates a staggering 98.39% increase in their ownership stake. Such activities are typically disclosed through legal filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and it is noted that corporate insiders hold about 9.10% of the stock.

Institutional Investors and Norwood Financial

Institutional investors have recently adjusted their stakes in Norwood Financial. For instance, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its investment by 3.0% in the third quarter and now owns 20,537 shares worth $566,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares. Cetera Investment Advisers made a significant move by increasing its position by 258.7% in the second quarter, owning 84,919 shares valued at $2,155,000 after purchasing an extra 61,247 shares. Additionally, Code Waechter LLC established a new investment in Norwood Financial during the same period, with their stake valued at approximately $815,000. Meanwhile, Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake worth about $200,000. Lastly, the Bank of New York Mellon Corp. increased its shares by 9.1% in the second quarter, now owning 30,657 shares valued at $778,000 after acquiring an additional 2,563 shares. In summary, institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 28.08% of the company’s stock.

Norwood Financial Stock Performance

During midday trading on Friday, Norwood Financial's shares (NASDAQ:NWFL) decreased by $0.02, bringing the stock price to $26.75. The trading volume for the day reached 14,544 shares, comparatively higher than the average volume of 11,317 shares. The market capitalization of Norwood Financial stands at $216.46 million, with a price-to-earnings (PE) ratio of 16.82 and a beta of 0.61. The stock has recorded a low of $23.50 and a high of $34.50 over the past year. Currently, the fifty-day moving average is $29.56, while the 200-day moving average is $27.66. Financially, the company displays a quick ratio and current ratio of 0.91 and has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

Dividends from Norwood Financial

Moreover, recently Norwood Financial announced an increase in its quarterly dividend. The upcoming dividend will be distributed on February 3rd to shareholders who are on record as of January 15th. This dividend will amount to $0.31, marking an increase from the prior dividend of $0.30. This yields an annualized dividend of $1.24, equating to a yield of 4.64%. The ex-dividend date is set for January 15th. The current dividend payout ratio for Norwood Financial is 77.99%.

Profile of Norwood Financial

Norwood Financial Corp. operates as a bank holding company for Wayne Bank, offering a variety of banking products and services. The bank accepts different deposit products such as interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing transaction accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit.

Norwood, Financial, Investors