Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (WASH) – What Are Investment Firms Thinking About This Stock?

Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the four brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $35.50.

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Zacks Research upgraded Washington Trust Bancorp from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Seaport Research Partners cut Washington Trust Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Washington Trust Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Washington Trust Bancorp

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Washington Trust Bancorp during the second quarter worth approximately $81,558,000. First Horizon Corp acquired a new position in Washington Trust Bancorp in the 1st quarter valued at $9,912,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in Washington Trust Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $10,556,000. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in Washington Trust Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $6,712,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Washington Trust Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $5,466,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.81% of the company’s stock.

Washington Trust Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of Washington Trust Bancorp stock opened at $37.07 on Monday. Washington Trust Bancorp has a 1 year low of $25.23 and a 1 year high of $40.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $39.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.06. The company has a market capitalization of $706.92 million, a P/E ratio of 12.87, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.73.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 20th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $60.47 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $59.91 million. Washington Trust Bancorp had a return on equity of 10.18% and a net margin of 14.50%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Washington Trust Bancorp will post 3.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Washington Trust Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 1st were issued a dividend of $0.56 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 1st. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.0%. Washington Trust Bancorp’s payout ratio is 77.78%.

Washington Trust Bancorp Company Profile

Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc is the holding company for The Washington Trust Company, a community bank headquartered in Westerly, Rhode Island. Founded in 1800, Washington Trust is one of the oldest continuously operating banks in the United States and serves individuals, families, businesses and institutions.

The bank provides a range of financial services, including checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, residential and commercial real estate lending, consumer loans, business banking and cash-management services.