Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Analyst Says

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) had its price objective upped by investment analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $33.00 to $36.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “market perform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ price objective points to a potential downside of 4.31% from the company’s current price.

WASH has been the subject of a number of other reports. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Washington Trust Bancorp from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Zacks Research downgraded Washington Trust Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Seaport Research Partners lowered Washington Trust Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Washington Trust Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Washington Trust Bancorp from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, June 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Washington Trust Bancorp presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $35.50.

Washington Trust Bancorp Price Performance

Washington Trust Bancorp stock opened at $37.62 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $717.41 million, a P/E ratio of 13.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $34.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $33.65. Washington Trust Bancorp has a 12-month low of $25.23 and a 12-month high of $39.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 20th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $60.47 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $59.91 million. Washington Trust Bancorp had a return on equity of 10.24% and a net margin of 14.50%. Equities analysts expect that Washington Trust Bancorp will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Washington Trust Bancorp

In other Washington Trust Bancorp news, EVP Rolando A. Lora sold 885 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 11,292 shares in the company, valued at $356,262.60. This represents a 7.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Edward O. Handy III acquired 3,195 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $31.32 per share, for a total transaction of $100,067.40. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 51,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,611,163.44. The trade was a 6.62% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WASH. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in Washington Trust Bancorp by 17.7% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 11,351 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $350,000 after buying an additional 1,708 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 8.1% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 19,312 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $546,000 after acquiring an additional 1,448 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 9.8% during the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 29,957 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $847,000 after acquiring an additional 2,670 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $409,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 304,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,608,000 after acquiring an additional 8,938 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.81% of the company’s stock.

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.