Barclays PLC Buys 16,511 Shares of Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH)

Barclays PLC increased its position in Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) by 44.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 53,315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,511 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned 0.31% of Washington Trust Bancorp worth $1,717,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 7.7% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 826,057 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $22,642,000 after purchasing an additional 59,115 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 16.5% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 282,925 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,755,000 after purchasing an additional 40,122 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 1.4% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 149,354 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,094,000 after buying an additional 1,996 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Washington Trust Bancorp by 12.3% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 136,141 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,732,000 after buying an additional 14,910 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in Washington Trust Bancorp by 56.6% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 108,668 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,979,000 after buying an additional 39,268 shares in the last quarter. 65.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on WASH shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $30.00 to $34.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd.

Washington Trust Bancorp Stock Down 2.2 %

WASH stock opened at $30.76 on Friday. Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $24.11 and a fifty-two week high of $40.59. The company has a market cap of $592.35 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.52 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.63, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. The business’s 50-day moving average is $35.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $31.93.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.08. Washington Trust Bancorp had a net margin of 11.24% and a return on equity of 9.55%. The company had revenue of $103.86 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $47.32 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.65 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. will post 2.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Washington Trust Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.56 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.28%. Washington Trust Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 83.90%.

Washington Trust Bancorp Company Profile

Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for The Washington Trust Company, of Westerly that provides various banking and financial services to individuals and businesses. The company operates in two segments, Commercial Banking and Wealth Management Services. The Commercial Banking segment offers deposit accounts, including interest-bearing and noninterest-bearing demand deposits, NOW and savings accounts, money market and retirement deposit accounts, and time deposits; various commercial and retail lending products, such as commercial real estate loans, including commercial mortgages, and construction and development loans; commercial and industrial loans comprising working capital, equipment financing, and financing for other business-related purposes; residential real estate loans that consist of mortgage and homeowner construction loans; and consumer loans comprising home equity loans and lines of credit, personal installment loans, and loans to individuals secured by general aviation aircraft.