Short Interest in Norwood Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:NWFL) Drops By 26.3%

Norwood Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:NWFL) experienced a significant decline in short interest during December. According to reports, as of December 15th, short interest fell to 33,400 shares, marking a 26.3% decrease from the previous total of 45,300 shares at the end of November. Currently, short sales represent about 0.4% of the stock's overall shares. Given the average daily trading volume of 11,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio stands at 2.8 days.

Insider Activity at Norwood Financial

In addition to the change in short interest, there has been recent activity among the company’s insiders. On December 19th, Director Ronald R. Schmalzle purchased 7,692 shares at an average price of $26.00 each, resulting in a transaction value of $199,992. Following this acquisition, he holds a total of 15,510 shares valued at approximately $403,260, indicating a 98.39% increase in his ownership. Details of this transaction are available in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Corporate insiders currently own about 9.10% of Norwood Financial's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Norwood Financial

Recent movements among institutional investors reflect a growing interest in Norwood Financial. For instance, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake by 3.0% during the third quarter, reaching 20,537 shares valued at $566,000 after adding 600 new shares. Furthermore, Cetera Investment Advisers significantly boosted its position by 258.7% in the second quarter, acquiring 61,247 shares to hold a total of 84,919 shares worth $2,155,000. Other institutions such as Code Waechter LLC and Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC also initiated new stakes in the company during the third quarter, contributing to a total institutional ownership of 28.08% in Norwood Financial.

Norwood Financial Stock Performance

As of midday trading on the most recent Friday, Norwood Financial's shares declined by $0.02 to reach $26.75. The trading volume for the day was 14,544 shares, surpassing the average volume of 11,317. The company's market capitalization stands at $216.46 million, with a PE ratio of 16.82 and a beta of 0.61. In the past year, the stock has fluctuated, hitting a low of $23.50 and a high of $34.50. It currently has a fifty-day moving average of $29.56 and a 200-day average of $27.66. Financial ratios indicate a quick ratio and current ratio of 0.91, along with a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

Norwood Financial Increases Dividend

Additionally, Norwood Financial has announced an upcoming dividend payment. Investors on record by January 15th will receive a payment of $0.31 per share, an increase from the previous $0.30 dividend. This results in an annualized dividend of $1.24, equating to a yield of 4.64%. The ex-dividend date is set for January 15th, and the current dividend payout ratio for the company is 77.99%.

Norwood Financial Company Profile

Norwood Financial Corp. functions as the bank holding company for Wayne Bank, offering an array of banking products and services. Their offerings include various deposit options such as interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit.

Norwood, Finance, Investment