Eastern Bankshares, Inc. $EBC Position Lifted by Bessemer Group Inc.

Bessemer Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) by 36.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 357,493 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 95,100 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. owned about 0.15% of Eastern Bankshares worth $6,993,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of EBC. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 87.1% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,637 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 762 shares in the last quarter. Danske Bank A S grew its stake in Eastern Bankshares by 533.3% in the fourth quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 1,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 1,600 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in Eastern Bankshares by 36.4% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 584 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in Eastern Bankshares in the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Eastern Bankshares in the fourth quarter valued at about $52,000. Institutional investors own 71.68% of the company’s stock.

Eastern Bankshares Price Performance

Shares of Eastern Bankshares stock opened at $23.00 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $20.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $20.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.92 and a beta of 0.67. Eastern Bankshares, Inc. has a twelve month low of $14.88 and a twelve month high of $23.53.

Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by ($0.04). Eastern Bankshares had a net margin of 26.28% and a return on equity of 8.42%. The company had revenue of $295.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $308.68 million. Equities research analysts forecast that Eastern Bankshares, Inc. will post 1.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Eastern Bankshares Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. This is a positive change from Eastern Bankshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. Eastern Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EBC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised Eastern Bankshares from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Eastern Bankshares from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. TD Cowen dropped their price target on Eastern Bankshares from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $24.00 price objective for the company. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.08.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Luis Borgen sold 1,710 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.71, for a total transaction of $38,834.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 20,475 shares in the company, valued at approximately $464,987.25. This represents a 7.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.26% of the company’s stock.

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.