Northwest Bancshares (NASDAQ:NWBI) Sets New 52-Week High After Dividend Announcement

Shares of Northwest Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:NWBI) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock traded as high as $14.02 and last traded at $13.84, with a volume of 165401 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $13.92.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Wednesday, August 14th. Investors of record on Friday, August 2nd will be issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 2nd. Northwest Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.67%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $12.00 price objective (down previously from $13.00) on shares of Northwest Bancshares in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Northwest Bancshares from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd.

Northwest Bancshares Trading Up 3.1 %

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $11.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $11.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market cap of $1.80 billion, a PE ratio of 13.75 and a beta of 0.64.

Northwest Bancshares (NASDAQ:NWBI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 22nd. The savings and loans company reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.23. Northwest Bancshares had a net margin of 14.28% and a return on equity of 8.75%. The business had revenue of $188.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $132.80 million. As a group, analysts forecast that Northwest Bancshares, Inc. will post 0.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Devin T. Cygnar sold 3,843 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.08, for a total value of $42,580.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,823 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $130,998.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Devin T. Cygnar sold 3,843 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.08, for a total value of $42,580.44. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 11,823 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $130,998.84. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Timothy M. Hunter bought 10,000 shares of Northwest Bancshares stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 16th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $11.30 per share, for a total transaction of $113,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 161,474 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,824,656.20. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 4,914 shares of company stock valued at $54,227. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Northwest Bancshares

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NWBI. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Northwest Bancshares by 93.7% during the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,935 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,420 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its holdings in Northwest Bancshares by 164.6% during the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,918 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 3,059 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Northwest Bancshares by 1,148.0% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 5,092 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 4,684 shares in the last quarter. IVC Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Northwest Bancshares during the first quarter worth approximately $124,000. Finally, First Merchants Corp acquired a new stake in Northwest Bancshares during the fourth quarter worth approximately $126,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.32% of the company’s stock.

Northwest Bancshares Company Profile

Northwest Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Northwest Bank, a state-chartered savings bank that provides personal and business banking solutions. The company accepts various deposits, including checking, savings, money market deposit, term certificate, and individual retirement accounts.