Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the five analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have assigned a hold recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $28.6667.

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from $28.00 to $27.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 9th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Washington Trust Bancorp by 1.1% in the first quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 36,775 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,135,000 after acquiring an additional 401 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its stake in Washington Trust Bancorp by 24.6% in the second 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 during the last quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. raised its position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 10.1% in the second quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 5,646 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $160,000 after purchasing an additional 518 shares during the period. CWM LLC raised its position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 6.2% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 12,501 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $354,000 after purchasing an additional 734 shares during the period. Finally, Shepherd Financial Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 8.8% in the first quarter. Shepherd Financial Partners LLC now owns 10,167 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $314,000 after purchasing an additional 819 shares during the period. 65.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Washington Trust Bancorp Stock Up 0.6%

Washington Trust Bancorp stock opened at $26.56 on Tuesday. Washington Trust Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $24.95 and a fifty-two week high of $40.59. The stock has a market cap of $508.89 million, a PE ratio of -17.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.91. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $28.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $28.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.05.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.05. Washington Trust Bancorp had a negative net margin of 6.10% and a positive return on equity of 9.05%. The business had revenue of $54.26 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $54.07 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.63 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Washington Trust Bancorp will post 2.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Washington Trust Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 1st were paid a $0.56 dividend. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.4%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 1st. Washington Trust Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently -148.34%.

Washington Trust Bancorp Company Profile

Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for The Washington Trust Company, of Westerly that provides various banking and financial services to individuals and businesses. The company operates in two segments, Commercial Banking and Wealth Management Services. The Commercial Banking segment offers deposit accounts, including interest-bearing and noninterest-bearing demand deposits, NOW and savings accounts, money market and retirement deposit accounts, and time deposits; various commercial and retail lending products, such as commercial real estate loans, including commercial mortgages, and construction and development loans; commercial and industrial loans comprising working capital, equipment financing, and financing for other business-related purposes; residential real estate loans that consist of mortgage and homeowner construction loans; and consumer loans comprising home equity loans and lines of credit, personal installment loans, and loans to individuals secured by general aviation aircraft.