Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) have been given an average rating of “Hold” by the seven analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have issued a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $21.8750.

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Wednesday. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Eastern Bankshares from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays began coverage on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $22.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Hovde Group began coverage on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a report on Monday, January 5th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $22.50 target price for the company.

Eastern Bankshares Trading Up 0.1%

EBC opened at $19.44 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $18.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $17.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 77.76 and a beta of 0.81. Eastern Bankshares has a 1-year low of $13.51 and a 1-year high of $20.19.

Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter. Eastern Bankshares had a return on equity of 7.94% and a net margin of 4.97%.The business had revenue of $162.26 million for the quarter. Analysts expect that Eastern Bankshares will post 1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eastern Bankshares Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 3rd. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Eastern Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 208.00%.

Insider Activity at Eastern Bankshares

In other news, CFO R David Rosato bought 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 28th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $17.08 per share, with a total value of $170,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 30,000 shares in the company, valued at $512,400. The trade was a 50.00% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph F. Casey sold 322,771 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.03, for a total transaction of $6,142,332.13. Following the sale, the director owned 36,112 shares in the company, valued at $687,211.36. This trade represents a 89.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eastern Bankshares

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. HoldCo Asset Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Eastern Bankshares during the second quarter worth about $79,534,000. Fourthstone LLC purchased a new stake in Eastern Bankshares in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,293,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Eastern Bankshares during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,680,000. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 36.2% during the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 109,369 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,794,000 after buying an additional 29,058 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Anderson Financial Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $950,000. 71.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.