Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) Now Covered by Piper Sandler

Research analysts at Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) in a research report issued on Monday. The firm set a “neutral” rating and a $32.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock. Piper Sandler’s target price indicates a potential downside of 1.30% from the company’s current price.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on WASH. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Washington Trust Bancorp from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.33.

Washington Trust Bancorp Trading Up 0.9%

WASH traded up $0.28 during trading on Monday, reaching $32.42. 10,459 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 134,175. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $33.11 and its 200 day moving average is $30.33. Washington Trust Bancorp has a 12 month low of $24.95 and a 12 month high of $37.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $617.33 million, a PE ratio of 12.01, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 0.85.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $59.25 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $56.38 million. Equities analysts anticipate that Washington Trust Bancorp will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WASH. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings 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 worth $32,953,000 after acquiring an additional 7,641 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake 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 valued at $18,745,000 after purchasing an additional 74,145 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Washington Trust Bancorp by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 473,378 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $13,389,000 after purchasing an additional 6,570 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 3.0% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 304,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,608,000 after purchasing an additional 8,938 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Drexel Morgan & Co. raised its stake 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 purchasing an additional 50,000 shares during the last quarter. 65.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Washington Trust Bancorp

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.