Eastern (NASDAQ:EML) Director Frederick Disanto Buys 1,000 Shares

Eastern Company (The) (NASDAQ:EML) Director Frederick Disanto purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $18.39 per share, for a total transaction of $18,390.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 99,689 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,833,280.71. This represents a 1.01% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Eastern Price Performance

EML stock traded up $0.51 during trading on Monday, hitting $19.05. 19,274 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 14,739. Eastern Company has a 52 week low of $17.61 and a 52 week high of $28.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $115.06 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.28 and a beta of 0.97. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $18.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $20.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 3.59.

Eastern (NASDAQ:EML) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 3rd. The industrial products company reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.36 by ($0.05). Eastern had a net margin of 2.90% and a return on equity of 6.52%. The business had revenue of $248.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $68.68 million.

Eastern Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be given a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Eastern’s dividend payout ratio is 37.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on EML shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Eastern in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Eastern to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Eastern has an average rating of “Hold”.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Eastern in the 2nd quarter valued at $326,000. Teton Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Eastern during the third quarter worth $3,293,000. Minerva Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Eastern by 3.8% during the second quarter. Minerva Advisors LLC now owns 525,053 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $11,982,000 after purchasing an additional 19,066 shares during the period. De Lisle Partners LLP grew its holdings in shares of Eastern by 14.7% in the second quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP now owns 46,922 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,072,000 after purchasing an additional 6,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management grew its holdings in shares of Eastern by 20.0% in the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 28,086 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $553,000 after purchasing an additional 4,683 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

Eastern Company Profile

Eastern (NASDAQ:EML), based in West Haven, Connecticut, is a diversified industrial manufacturer specializing in secure hardware and metal finishing services. The company operates through two primary segments: Industrial Hardware Products and Security Products, complemented by a Metal Coatings division. Its Industrial Hardware Products segment produces cold-headed fasteners, forgings, hinges and precision components for heavy commercial vehicles, hydraulic cylinders and industrial machinery.

The Security Products segment designs and manufactures a wide range of lock and latch solutions, including padlocks, door hardware, cabinet locks and rental security towers for commercial and institutional applications.