Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Takes $13.79 Million Position in Eastern Bankshares, Inc. $EBC

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 620,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,791,000.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in Eastern Bankshares in the 2nd quarter valued at about $10,714,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in Eastern Bankshares during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,708,000. Algert Global LLC bought a new stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,474,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares during the 2nd quarter worth about $794,000. Finally, Commerce Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $231,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.68% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eastern Bankshares

In other news, Director Luis Borgen sold 1,710 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.71, for a total transaction of $38,834.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 20,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $464,987.25. This trade represents a 7.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Joseph F. Casey sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.72, for a total value of $227,200.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 62,079 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,410,434.88. This represents a 13.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 35,197 shares of company stock worth $809,724 in the last ninety days. 1.26% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on EBC shares. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $26.00 price objective (up from $24.00) on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a report on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a report on Friday, August 7th. Seaport Research Partners reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $27.00 price target on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Eastern Bankshares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Eastern Bankshares from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Eastern Bankshares currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $24.86.

Eastern Bankshares Stock Performance

NASDAQ:EBC opened at $22.29 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $22.67 and a 200-day moving average of $20.97. The firm has a market cap of $5.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.66 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. Eastern Bankshares, Inc. has a twelve month low of $16.61 and a twelve month high of $23.77.

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

Eastern Bankshares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Eastern Bankshares’s payout ratio is 34.09%.

About Eastern Bankshares

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.