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

Shares of Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) have been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the five ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $31.3333.

A number of research firms have issued reports on WASH. Zacks Research raised shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Washington Trust Bancorp from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on Washington Trust Bancorp in a report on Monday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $32.00 price objective for the company.

Washington Trust Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of WASH opened at $32.22 on Friday. Washington Trust Bancorp has a 1 year low of $24.95 and a 1 year high of $37.08. The company has a market cap of $613.47 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $33.30 and a 200-day moving average of $30.38.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.08. Washington Trust Bancorp had a net margin of 13.26% and a return on equity of 9.75%. The business had revenue of $59.25 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $56.38 million. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Washington Trust Bancorp will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Washington Trust Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $0.56 per share. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 1st. Washington Trust Bancorp’s payout ratio is 82.96%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at about $368,000. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV bought a new position in Washington Trust Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at about $249,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Washington Trust Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at about $484,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new position in Washington Trust Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at about $222,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth about $299,000. 65.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Washington Trust Bancorp Company Profile

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.