Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) Share Price Passes Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Shares of Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $30.52 and traded as high as $33.06. Washington Trust Bancorp shares last traded at $32.91, with a volume of 199,601 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped 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. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp in a research note on Monday, March 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $32.00 price target for the company. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $31.33.

Washington Trust Bancorp Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $33.80 and a 200 day moving average of $30.56. The company has a market capitalization of $636.51 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19.

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

Washington Trust Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 1st will be issued a $0.56 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 1st. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.7%. Washington Trust Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently 82.96%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 0.7% during 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 in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake 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 during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 6,570 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 304,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,608,000 after buying an additional 8,938 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Drexel Morgan & Co. grew its position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 19.9% during the 4th quarter. Drexel Morgan & Co. now owns 300,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,889,000 after buying an additional 50,000 shares during the period. 65.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.