Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) Director Luis Borgen Sells 1,709 Shares

Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) Director Luis Borgen sold 1,709 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.97, for a total value of $37,546.73. Following the sale, the director owned 22,185 shares in the company, valued at approximately $487,404.45. This represents a 7.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Eastern Bankshares Stock Performance

EBC traded up $0.17 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $22.24. 2,939,881 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,566,000. The company’s 50-day moving average is $20.23 and its 200 day moving average is $19.98. Eastern Bankshares, Inc. has a 52 week low of $14.88 and a 52 week high of $22.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.14 billion, a PE ratio of 12.49 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

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

Eastern Bankshares Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th were given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. This is a positive change from Eastern Bankshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Eastern Bankshares’s payout ratio is 33.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on EBC shares. DA Davidson started coverage on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research report on Friday, May 15th. They set a “buy” rating and a $24.00 target price for the company. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Eastern Bankshares from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Stephens began coverage on Eastern Bankshares in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $24.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised Eastern Bankshares from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on Eastern Bankshares from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.08.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eastern Bankshares

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 38.0% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 198,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,254,000 after purchasing an additional 54,664 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Eastern Bankshares in the 1st quarter worth approximately $954,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in Eastern Bankshares by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 114,881 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,884,000 after purchasing an additional 5,028 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in Eastern Bankshares by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 432,405 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,091,000 after buying an additional 29,781 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC grew its holdings in Eastern Bankshares by 789.9% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 545,589 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,948,000 after buying an additional 484,277 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.68% 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.