Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) Hits New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) shares hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $36.97 and last traded at $36.57, with a volume of 145487 shares. The stock had previously closed at $35.72.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on WASH. Piper Sandler set a $32.00 price objective on Washington Trust Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research raised Washington Trust Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. 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 research report on Friday, January 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $31.33.

Washington Trust Bancorp Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $30.53 and a two-hundred day moving average of $29.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $695.93 million, a PE ratio of 13.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.01.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $59.25 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $56.38 million. Washington Trust Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.83% and a net margin of 13.26%. Research analysts expect that Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. 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 Wednesday, January 14th. Investors of record on Friday, January 2nd were paid a $0.56 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.1%. Washington Trust Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.96%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D raised its stake in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 18.4% during the 2nd quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 73,332 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,074,000 after buying an additional 11,388 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Washington Trust Bancorp by 91.5% in the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 436,454 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $12,343,000 after acquiring an additional 208,586 shares during the last quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC increased its holdings in Washington Trust Bancorp by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 97,160 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,748,000 after acquiring an additional 2,019 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in Washington Trust Bancorp during the second quarter worth about $642,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in Washington Trust Bancorp during the second quarter worth about $202,000. 65.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.