Teton Advisors LLC Takes Position in Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. $WASH

Teton Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 33,280 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $962,000. Teton Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.17% of Washington Trust Bancorp at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Washington Trust Bancorp by 91.5% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 436,454 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $12,343,000 after purchasing an additional 208,586 shares in the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D boosted its position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 36.7% during the 3rd quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 100,280 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,898,000 after purchasing an additional 26,948 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new stake in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at about $642,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at about $202,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Washington Trust Bancorp by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 473,378 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,389,000 after buying an additional 6,570 shares in the last quarter. 65.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Washington Trust Bancorp Stock Down 1.3%

Washington Trust Bancorp stock opened at $33.25 on Friday. Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $24.95 and a fifty-two week high of $37.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $32.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $30.19. The stock has a market cap of $633.08 million, a PE ratio of 12.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.85.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.08. Washington Trust Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.75% and a net margin of 13.26%.The company had revenue of $59.25 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $56.38 million. Research analysts predict that Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. will post 2.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Washington Trust Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 14th. Investors of record on Friday, January 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.56 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.7%. Washington Trust Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Washington Trust Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $32.00 price objective on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $31.33.

Washington Trust Bancorp 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.