Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) Director Sells $236,200.00 in Stock

Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) Director Joseph Casey sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.62, for a total value of $236,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 82,079 shares in the company, valued at $1,938,705.98. This represents a 10.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Eastern Bankshares Stock Performance

Shares of EBC stock opened at $22.74 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $22.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $20.94. Eastern Bankshares, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $15.95 and a fifty-two week high of $23.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.92 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.03. Eastern Bankshares had a return on equity of 8.71% and a net margin of 25.12%.The firm had revenue of $316.01 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $308.20 million. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Eastern Bankshares, Inc. will post 1.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eastern Bankshares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Eastern Bankshares’s payout ratio is currently 34.09%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eastern Bankshares

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Eastern Bankshares by 87.1% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,637 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 762 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S raised its holdings in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 533.3% during the fourth quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 1,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 1,600 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. SHP Wealth Management acquired a new position in Eastern Bankshares in the 4th quarter worth approximately $52,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont acquired a new position in Eastern Bankshares in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $55,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on EBC shares. Stephens downgraded shares of Eastern Bankshares from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $24.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Eastern Bankshares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Eastern Bankshares from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Seaport Research Partners reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $27.00 price target on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Eastern Bankshares from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Eastern Bankshares presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $24.86.

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.