Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) Trading 8% Higher After Strong Earnings

Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) traded up 8% on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as high as $33.47 and last traded at $32.62. 93,284 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 6% from the average session volume of 99,525 shares. The stock had previously closed at $30.19.

The financial services provider reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $59.25 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $56.38 million. Washington Trust Bancorp had a positive return on equity of 8.90% and a negative net margin of 6.22%.

Washington Trust Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.56 per share. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 2nd. Washington Trust Bancorp’s payout ratio is -140.88%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from $28.00 to $27.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $28.33.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Washington Trust Bancorp

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new position in Washington Trust Bancorp during the second quarter valued at $33,000. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its stake in Washington Trust Bancorp by 24.6% during the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,130 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 200.8% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,364 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 1,578 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 367.2% in the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 2,378 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 1,869 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.81% of the company’s stock.

Washington Trust Bancorp Trading Up 5.9%

The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The company has a fifty day moving average of $29.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $28.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $608.48 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -20.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 0.86.

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.