Benjamin Louis Schmitt Acquires Shares of Finward Bancorp

On December 13th, Benjamin Louis Schmitt, the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Finward Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWD), made a significant move by purchasing 500 shares of the company's stock. This transaction was executed at an average price of $31.13 per share, amounting to a total investment of $15,565. Following this acquisition, Schmitt now holds 3,490 shares in Finward Bancorp, reflecting a total value of around $108,643.70. This recent purchase marks a 16.72% increase in his ownership of the firm.

The transaction has been reported in a legal filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which is publicly accessible on their website.

Recent Trading Activity

In addition to the recent acquisition, Benjamin Louis Schmitt engaged in another purchase on October 31st, where he acquired 10 shares of Finward Bancorp stock at an average price of $31.28 each, totaling $312.80.

Stock Performance Updates

On the trading day following Schmitt's purchase, Finward Bancorp saw its stock rise by 1.2%, reaching $31.15 per share. During this trading session, 1,147 shares were exchanged, as opposed to the average daily trading volume of 5,768 shares. The firm has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, with both a quick ratio and current ratio at 0.86. Finward Bancorp's stock has recorded a 52-week low of $22.50 and a high of $33.50. Currently, the company's market capitalization stands at approximately $134.38 million, with a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 11.58 and a beta of 0.52. The average price over the past 50 days is $31.24, while the 200-day average is $28.42.

Financial Results

Finward Bancorp released its latest quarterly earnings on October 29th, reporting earnings per share of $0.14. This figure fell short of analysts' expectations, which had predicted earnings of $0.18. The company registered a return on equity of 7.60% alongside a net margin of 10.44%, generating a total revenue of $14.87 million for the quarter. Analysts forecast that Finward Bancorp is likely to post earnings per share of $0.08 for the current fiscal year.

Dividend Information

Recently, the company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.12, which was paid to shareholders on October 31st. Shareholders who were on record as of October 18th received this dividend, with the ex-dividend date coinciding on the same date. The annualized dividend stands at $0.48, yielding a dividend rate of 1.54%. Currently, Finward Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is 17.84%.

Institutional Investor Activity

Financial analysts noted an increase in interest from institutional investors in Finward Bancorp's stock recently. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP made a new acquisition of shares in the second quarter, investing around $329,000. Geode Capital Management LLC also raised its stake by 7.9% during the third quarter, bringing their total holdings to 38,662 shares now valued at $1,237,000 after adding 2,825 shares. Vanguard Group Inc. has similarly expanded its position by 3.4% in the first quarter, now owning 159,750 shares worth around $3,930,000. Overall, institutional investors control approximately 26.59% of Finward Bancorp's stock.

Analyst Ratings

In a separate development, Hovde Group has recently upgraded Finward Bancorp from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating, establishing a target price of $31.00 for the shares in a research report published on September 6th.

About Finward Bancorp

Finward Bancorp operates as the parent company for Peoples Bank, offering a range of banking products and services. Its deposit offerings include non-interest and interest-bearing demand accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, certificate accounts, and retirement savings plans.

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