Panagora Asset Management Inc. Increases Stock Position in Northwest Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:NWBI)

Panagora Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Northwest Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:NWBI) by 80.8% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 488,161 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock after buying an additional 218,158 shares during the quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Northwest Bancshares were worth $5,638,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Northwest Bancshares by 1,148.0% in 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 acquiring an additional 4,684 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in shares of Northwest Bancshares by 12.6% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 25,452 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $318,000 after purchasing an additional 2,852 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of Northwest Bancshares by 164.6% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,918 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 3,059 shares during the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its holdings in shares of Northwest Bancshares by 39.8% during the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 70,408 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $879,000 after buying an additional 20,060 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mach 1 Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Northwest Bancshares in the 4th quarter worth approximately $418,000. Institutional investors own 66.32% of the company’s stock.

Northwest Bancshares Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ NWBI opened at $13.85 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.45 and a beta of 0.64. Northwest Bancshares, Inc. has a one year low of $9.80 and a one year high of $14.55. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $12.79 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $11.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

Northwest Bancshares (NASDAQ:NWBI) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The savings and loans company reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $97.99 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $133.77 million. Northwest Bancshares had a net margin of 14.28% and a return on equity of 8.72%. As a group, analysts expect that Northwest Bancshares, Inc. will post 0.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northwest Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 2nd. Northwest Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.67%.

Insider Activity at Northwest Bancshares

In other Northwest Bancshares news, Director John P. Meegan sold 7,200 shares of Northwest Bancshares stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.16, for a total value of $101,952.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 76,324 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,080,747.84. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Northwest Bancshares news, CFO Douglas M. Schosser purchased 7,000 shares of Northwest Bancshares stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were bought at an average price of $14.19 per share, for a total transaction of $99,330.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,347 shares in the company, valued at $657,663.93. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director John P. Meegan sold 7,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.16, for a total value of $101,952.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 76,324 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,080,747.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,277 shares of company stock worth $299,993 in the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.