Piper Sandler Cuts Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) Price Target to $27.00

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) had its price target trimmed by Piper Sandler from $28.00 to $27.00 in a research note released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an underweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Separately, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp in a report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Washington Trust Bancorp presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $28.67.

Washington Trust Bancorp Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:WASH opened at $26.39 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $29.00 and a 200-day moving average of $28.41. The company has a market capitalization of $505.63 million, a PE ratio of -17.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.91. 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 has a 52-week low of $24.95 and a 52-week high of $40.59.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $54.26 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $54.07 million. Washington Trust Bancorp had a negative net margin of 6.10% and a positive return on equity of 9.05%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.63 earnings per share. On average, equities 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 1st were issued a $0.56 dividend. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.5%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 1st. Washington Trust Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently -148.34%.

Institutional Trading of Washington Trust Bancorp

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new stake in Washington Trust Bancorp in the second quarter valued at $33,000. Ransom Advisory Ltd acquired a new stake in Washington Trust Bancorp in the first quarter valued at $40,000. Federated Hermes Inc. acquired a new stake in Washington Trust Bancorp during the 1st quarter worth about $53,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in 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 worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 1,578 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in Washington Trust Bancorp by 312.5% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 4,504 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $127,000 after acquiring an additional 3,412 shares during the period. 65.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Washington Trust Bancorp

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.