Eastern Bankshares, Inc. $EBC Shares Purchased by Eastern Bank

Eastern Bank boosted its position in Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) by 6.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,547,906 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 89,890 shares during the period. Eastern Bank owned approximately 0.73% of Eastern Bankshares worth $28,094,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. HoldCo Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares in the 2nd quarter valued at $79,534,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Eastern Bankshares by 0.7% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,732,472 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,274,000 after purchasing an additional 31,228 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Eastern Bankshares in the second quarter valued at $34,680,000. Systematic Financial Management LP grew its position in Eastern Bankshares by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 1,891,060 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,876,000 after purchasing an additional 45,627 shares during the period. Finally, Azora Capital LP raised its stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 33.6% during the 2nd quarter. Azora Capital LP now owns 1,681,003 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,669,000 after buying an additional 423,102 shares during the last quarter. 71.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Joseph F. Casey sold 322,771 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.03, for a total value of $6,142,332.13. Following the transaction, the director owned 36,112 shares in the company, valued at $687,211.36. This trade represents a 89.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO R David Rosato purchased 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 28th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $17.08 per share, for a total transaction of $170,800.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer directly owned 30,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $512,400. The trade was a 50.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Eastern Bankshares Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of EBC stock opened at $19.08 on Wednesday. Eastern Bankshares, Inc. has a 1-year low of $13.51 and a 1-year high of $20.19. The company has a market cap of $4.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 76.32 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $18.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $17.51.

Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $244.99 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $243.03 million. Eastern Bankshares had a return on equity of 7.94% and a net margin of 4.97%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Eastern Bankshares, Inc. will post 1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eastern Bankshares Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were paid a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 3rd. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. Eastern Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 208.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on EBC shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Barclays started coverage on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $22.00 price objective on the stock. Hovde Group started coverage on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a report on Monday, January 5th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $22.50 target price for the company. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Eastern Bankshares from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Eastern Bankshares presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $21.88.

Eastern Bankshares Company Profile

Eastern Bankshares, Inc is the bank holding company for Eastern Bank, one of the oldest and largest mutual banks in the United States. Founded in 1818 as Salem Savings Bank and later rebranded as Eastern Bank in 1989, the company preserved its mutual ownership structure for more than two centuries. In March 2020, it completed an initial public offering and began trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker EBC, while continuing to emphasize its community-focused heritage.

Through its primary subsidiary, Eastern Bank, the company delivers a broad range of commercial and consumer banking products.