Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) Lowered to “Sell” Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note released on Tuesday morning.

Separately, Piper Sandler raised shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $30.00 to $34.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd.

Washington Trust Bancorp Trading Down 2.5 %

WASH stock opened at $33.93 on Tuesday. Washington Trust Bancorp has a 52 week low of $24.11 and a 52 week high of $40.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.63, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $35.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $31.68. The company has a market capitalization of $579.02 million, a PE ratio of 12.71 and a beta of 0.79.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $103.86 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $47.32 million. Washington Trust Bancorp had a net margin of 11.24% and a return on equity of 9.55%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.65 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Washington Trust Bancorp will post 2.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Washington Trust Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st were given a $0.56 dividend. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 1st. Washington Trust Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 83.90%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Washington Trust Bancorp

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WASH. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Washington Trust Bancorp in the second quarter worth approximately $232,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in Washington Trust Bancorp by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 149,354 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,094,000 after purchasing an additional 1,996 shares during the period. IFG Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $211,000. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in Washington Trust Bancorp by 24.8% during the second quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 89,804 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,462,000 after buying an additional 17,850 shares during the period. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers increased its stake in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 28,205 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $773,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.81% of the company’s stock.

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.