Vanguard Group Inc. Decreases Stake in Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH)

Vanguard Group Inc. lowered its stake in Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) by 7.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 944,104 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 79,727 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 0.06% of Washington Trust Bancorp worth $24,858,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 16,450.0% in the second quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 662 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 658 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 641.3% in the first quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,112 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 962 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 31.6% in the first quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 1,953 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 469 shares during the last quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can raised its holdings in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 27.2% in the first quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 1,530 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $84,000 after buying an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barrett & Company Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 37.7% in the third quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 4,010 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $106,000 after buying an additional 1,097 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.81% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st.

Washington Trust Bancorp Stock Up 0.8 %

NASDAQ:WASH opened at $24.92 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $424.39 million, a P/E ratio of 8.87 and a beta of 0.81. Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. has a 1-year low of $21.69 and a 1-year high of $33.96. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $25.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $27.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.57, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $45.96 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $47.38 million. Washington Trust Bancorp had a net margin of 13.19% and a return on equity of 10.53%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. will post 1.87 EPS for the current year.

Washington Trust Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 1st were paid a $0.56 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 28th. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.99%. Washington Trust Bancorp’s payout ratio is currently 79.72%.

Washington Trust Bancorp 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.