Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) Director Joseph Casey Sells 1,778 Shares of Stock

Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) Director Joseph Casey sold 1,778 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.69, for a total transaction of $40,342.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 60,301 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,368,229.69. This represents a 2.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Eastern Bankshares Stock Up 0.2%

EBC stock opened at $22.40 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $22.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.95. The company has a market capitalization of $5.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.73 and a beta of 0.68. Eastern Bankshares, Inc. has a 52 week low of $16.61 and a 52 week high of $23.77. 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 (NASDAQ:EBC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 analyst estimates of $308.20 million. On average, analysts forecast that Eastern Bankshares, Inc. will post 1.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eastern Bankshares Dividend Announcement

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eastern Bankshares

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in EBC. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position 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 purchasing an additional 762 shares in the last quarter. Danske Bank A S increased its holdings in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 533.3% in the 4th quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 1,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing 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 fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. Trust Co. of Vermont acquired a new stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares during the second quarter worth approximately $55,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP acquired a new stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares during the second quarter worth approximately $57,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.68% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on EBC. Seaport Research Partners reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $27.00 target price on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a report on Monday, July 27th. DA Davidson raised their price objective on shares of Eastern Bankshares from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Friday, August 7th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Eastern Bankshares from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Eastern Bankshares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $24.86.

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.