Finward Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWD) Short Interest Up 9.4% in October

Finward Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWD) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,500 shares, an increase of 9.4% from the September 30th total of 3,200 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 3,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.2 days. Currently, 0.1% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Finward Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FNWD traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $31.23. The company had a trading volume of 2,074 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,201. The firm has a market cap of $134.73 million, a PE ratio of 10.21 and a beta of 0.53. Finward Bancorp has a 1-year low of $18.06 and a 1-year high of $33.05. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $29.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $26.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Finward Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNWD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.18 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $14.87 million during the quarter. Finward Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.26% and a net margin of 12.00%. Research analysts forecast that Finward Bancorp will post 0.18 EPS for the current year.

Finward Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 18th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.54%. Finward Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Hovde Group raised shares of Finward Bancorp from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $31.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, September 6th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Finward Bancorp

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Finward Bancorp by 3.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 159,750 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,930,000 after buying an additional 5,206 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP purchased a new position in Finward Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at about $329,000. Global Financial Private Client LLC acquired a new position in Finward Bancorp in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Black Maple Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Finward Bancorp during the first quarter worth about $612,000. Finally, PL Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Finward Bancorp by 257.6% during the first quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC now owns 354,822 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,729,000 after purchasing an additional 255,595 shares in the last quarter. 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.