James Mitarotonda Acquires 2,342 Shares of Eastern (NASDAQ:EML) Stock

Eastern Company (The) (NASDAQ:EML) Director James Mitarotonda bought 2,342 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 9th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $18.74 per share, with a total value of $43,889.08. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 642,342 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,037,489.08. The trade was a 0.37% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Eastern Stock Up 5.3%

EML stock opened at $20.16 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $18.57 and a 200 day moving average of $20.52. The firm has a market cap of $121.77 million, a PE ratio of 17.23 and a beta of 0.97. Eastern Company has a twelve month low of $17.61 and a twelve month high of $27.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 3.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

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

Eastern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 13th. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th will be given a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. Eastern’s dividend payout ratio is 37.61%.

Trending Headlines about Eastern

Here are the key news stories impacting Eastern this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple directors bought stock recently (James A. Mitarotonda purchased 2,342 shares on Mar 9 and also bought 5,067 shares on Mar 6; Director Frederick Disanto bought 1,000 shares on Mar 6) — insider purchases often signal management confidence and can support the share price. Insider Buying: Eastern (NASDAQ:EML) Director Acquires 2,342 Shares of Stock
• Positive Sentiment: The company announced a quarterly dividend ($0.11 per share; $0.44 annualized, ~2.3% yield) and a March 13 payment date — dividends support investor demand from income-oriented holders. Eastern Stock Summary & Dividend
• Neutral Sentiment: Board changes announced: Eastern disclosed director retirements and governance adjustments — this is a structural change that may be neutral short-term but relevant for governance/institutional holders. Eastern Company Announces Director Retirements and Governance Changes
• Neutral Sentiment: Unrelated company press: Eastern Resources completed a Marengo Gold Project acquisition — this concerns Eastern Resources Limited (AU:EFE), not The Eastern Company (EML), so it’s unlikely to affect EML materially. Eastern Resources Completes Acquisition of Historic Marengo Gold Project
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data in the feeds shows effectively zero reported short interest (likely a reporting quirk); this suggests no material short squeeze dynamics at present. (Source aggregated market feeds.)
• Negative Sentiment: Recent quarterly results included an EPS miss (reported $0.31 vs. $0.36 consensus) and modest margins/ROE, which is a headwind for sentiment—investors may be balancing that weak print against the insider buys and dividend. Market summary with recent earnings

Institutional Trading of Eastern

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of Eastern by 82.9% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,273 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 577 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth bought a new position in Eastern during the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in Eastern by 295.9% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,738 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,299 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Eastern in the second quarter worth approximately $70,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG bought a new stake in Eastern in the 4th quarter worth approximately $98,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EML has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Eastern in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen raised Eastern to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Eastern presently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

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.