Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the four ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $35.50.

A number of research firms have recently commented on WASH. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Seaport Research Partners cut Washington Trust Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Washington Trust Bancorp from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Washington Trust Bancorp from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in Washington Trust Bancorp by 17.7% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 11,351 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 1,708 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 8.1% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 19,312 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $546,000 after buying an additional 1,448 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers raised its position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 9.8% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 29,957 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $847,000 after buying an additional 2,670 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp in the second quarter worth about $409,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 3.0% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 304,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,608,000 after buying an additional 8,938 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.81% of the company’s stock.

Washington Trust Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WASH opened at $40.19 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $766.42 million, a PE ratio of 13.95, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.72. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $36.98 and a 200 day moving average of $34.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 0.97. Washington Trust Bancorp has a one year low of $25.23 and a one year high of $40.50.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 20th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.06. Washington Trust Bancorp had a net margin of 14.50% and a return on equity of 10.18%. The company had revenue of $60.47 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $59.91 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Washington Trust Bancorp will post 3.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Washington Trust Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 1st were paid a $0.56 dividend. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 1st. Washington Trust Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.78%.

About Washington Trust Bancorp

Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc is the bank holding company for The Washington Trust Company, a community bank headquartered in Westerly, Rhode Island. Through its subsidiary, the company operates a network of branch offices across Rhode Island and southeastern Connecticut, serving individuals, small businesses and municipalities with a full suite of financial services.

The company’s core business activities encompass retail and commercial banking, including checking and savings accounts, consumer and commercial loans, mortgage financing, and cash management solutions.