Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) Rating Lowered to “Neutral” at Seaport Research Partners

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) was downgraded by stock analysts at Seaport Research Partners from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on WASH. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Washington Trust Bancorp from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. 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, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Washington Trust Bancorp presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $35.50.

Washington Trust Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of WASH opened at $37.62 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.99. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $34.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $33.65. The stock has a market cap of $717.41 million, a P/E ratio of 13.06, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.72. Washington Trust Bancorp has a one year low of $25.23 and a one year high of $39.85.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 20th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.06. Washington Trust Bancorp had a return on equity of 10.24% and a net margin of 14.50%.The business had revenue of $60.47 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $59.91 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Washington Trust Bancorp will post 3.07 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Washington Trust Bancorp

In other news, EVP Rolando A. Lora sold 885 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.55, for a total value of $27,921.75. Following the sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Edward O. Handy III purchased 3,195 shares of Washington Trust Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The shares were bought at an average price of $31.32 per share, with a total value of $100,067.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 51,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,611,163.44. This represents a 6.62% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Washington Trust Bancorp

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WASH. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 7,641 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Washington Trust Bancorp by 13.2% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 634,333 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,745,000 after buying an additional 74,145 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Washington Trust Bancorp by 3.0% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 304,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,608,000 after buying an additional 8,938 shares in the last quarter. Drexel Morgan & Co. raised its position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 19.9% in the fourth 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 during the period. Finally, First Horizon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp in the first quarter worth about $9,912,000. 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.