Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) Plans $0.56 Quarterly Dividend

Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WASH) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, September 19th, Zacks reports. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be paid a dividend of 0.56 per share by the financial services provider on Friday, October 11th. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.06%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 1st.

Washington Trust Bancorp has raised its dividend by an average of 3.0% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 13 consecutive years. Washington Trust Bancorp has a payout ratio of 91.1% meaning its dividend is currently covered by earnings, but may not be in the future if the company’s earnings decline. Research analysts expect Washington Trust Bancorp to earn $2.45 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.24 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 91.4%.

Washington Trust Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WASH opened at $31.72 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $541.14 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.70 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.34, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $31.21 and its 200-day simple moving average is $28.04. Washington Trust Bancorp has a 12 month low of $21.69 and a 12 month high of $34.27.

Washington Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:WASH) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.14. Washington Trust Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.95% and a net margin of 11.51%. The company had revenue of $102.66 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $46.06 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.66 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Washington Trust Bancorp will post 2.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of Washington Trust Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th.

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.