Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Reduce” by Brokerages

Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the two research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation and one has assigned a hold recommendation to the company.

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 Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WASH opened at $25.55 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $25.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $27.19. Washington Trust Bancorp has a one year low of $21.69 and a one year high of $33.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.57, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $435.19 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.09 and a beta of 0.81.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.22. Washington Trust Bancorp had a net margin of 13.19% and a return on equity of 10.53%. The business had revenue of $45.96 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $47.38 million. On average, analysts predict that Washington Trust Bancorp will post 1.87 EPS for the current year.

Washington Trust Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 1st were given a dividend of $0.56 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 28th. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.77%. Washington Trust Bancorp’s payout ratio is currently 79.72%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its position 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 valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 658 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position 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 valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 962 shares during the last quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can grew its position 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 valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. grew its position 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 valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 469 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 13.8% in the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,998 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $129,000 after purchasing an additional 484 shares during the last quarter. 65.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Washington Trust Bancorp Company 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.