First Horizon Corp Takes $9.91 Million Position in Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. $WASH

First Horizon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 296,225 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $9,912,000. First Horizon Corp owned 1.56% of Washington Trust Bancorp at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Washington Trust Bancorp by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,140,227 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,953,000 after acquiring an additional 7,641 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Washington Trust Bancorp by 13.2% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 634,333 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $18,745,000 after acquiring an additional 74,145 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew 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 acquiring an additional 8,938 shares in the last quarter. Drexel Morgan & Co. grew its stake 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 worth $8,889,000 after acquiring an additional 50,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 16.0% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 267,595 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,907,000 after purchasing an additional 36,937 shares during the last quarter. 65.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Washington Trust Bancorp news, EVP James Cannon Brown acquired 32,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $31.17 per share, for a total transaction of $997,440.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the executive vice president directly owned 37,280 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,162,017.60. This represents a 606.06% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Rolando A. Lora sold 885 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.55, for a total value of $27,921.75. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 11,292 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $356,262.60. The trade was a 7.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have acquired 36,801 shares of company stock valued at $1,147,293. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Washington Trust Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of WASH opened at $35.61 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $33.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $33.15. Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. has a 1-year low of $25.23 and a 1-year high of $37.08. The company has a market cap of $679.08 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.04, a PEG ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.72.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 20th. The financial services provider reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by ($0.11). Washington Trust Bancorp had a net margin of 13.71% and a return on equity of 9.79%. The firm had revenue of $57.83 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.24 million. On average, research analysts forecast that Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Washington Trust Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be paid a $0.56 dividend. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.3%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 1st. Washington Trust Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WASH has been the subject of several recent research reports. Zacks Research cut shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 27th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Washington Trust Bancorp has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $34.50.

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.