Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) Receives $31.33 Average Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) have received an average rating of “Hold” from the five research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $31.3333.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Washington Trust Bancorp

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of WASH. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Washington Trust Bancorp by 0.7% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,140,227 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,953,000 after purchasing an additional 7,641 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 13.2% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 634,333 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,745,000 after buying an additional 74,145 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 473,378 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $13,389,000 after buying an additional 6,570 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 304,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,608,000 after buying an additional 8,938 shares during the period. Finally, Drexel Morgan & Co. lifted its position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 19.9% during the 4th quarter. Drexel Morgan & Co. now owns 300,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,889,000 after buying an additional 50,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.81% of the company’s stock.

Washington Trust Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of WASH stock opened at $32.14 on Friday. Washington Trust Bancorp has a 52-week low of $24.95 and a 52-week high of $37.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market cap of $611.95 million, a PE ratio of 11.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 0.85. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $33.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $30.33.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last posted its 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. The firm had revenue of $59.25 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $56.38 million. Washington Trust Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.75% and a net margin of 13.26%. On average, equities analysts expect that Washington Trust Bancorp will post 2.76 EPS for the current year.

Washington Trust Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 2nd were given a dividend of $0.56 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.0%. Washington Trust Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.96%.

About Washington Trust Bancorp

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.