The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Invests $10.56 Million in Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. $WASH

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 289,374 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $10,556,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 1.52% of Washington Trust Bancorp at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Washington Trust Bancorp in the second quarter worth about $81,558,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in 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 acquiring an additional 7,641 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of 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 worth $18,745,000 after acquiring an additional 74,145 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 304,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,608,000 after acquiring an additional 8,938 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Drexel Morgan & Co. raised its position in shares of Washington Trust Bancorp by 19.9% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.81% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on WASH shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Washington Trust Bancorp from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Wall Street Zen raised Washington Trust Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Seaport Research Partners lowered shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $35.50.

Washington Trust Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WASH opened at $39.47 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 0.97. The firm has a market cap of $752.69 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.72. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $37.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $35.04. Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $25.23 and a fifty-two week high of $40.50.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 20th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $60.47 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $59.91 million. Washington Trust Bancorp had a net margin of 14.50% and a return on equity of 10.18%. On average, analysts expect that Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. will post 3.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Washington Trust Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 1st were issued a dividend of $0.56 per share. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 1st. Washington Trust Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.78%.

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.