Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) Short Interest Up 91.8% in June

Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totaling 18,678,319 shares, a growth of 91.8% from the June 15th total of 9,736,589 shares. Currently, 8.2% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 7,013,541 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.7 days.

Eastern Bankshares Price Performance

Shares of Eastern Bankshares stock traded up $0.78 on Thursday, hitting $23.46. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,758,054 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,534,674. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. Eastern Bankshares has a 1 year low of $14.88 and a 1 year high of $23.54. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $20.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $20.25. The company has a market capitalization of $5.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.18 and a beta of 0.67.

Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $295.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $308.68 million. Eastern Bankshares had a return on equity of 8.42% and a net margin of 26.28%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Eastern Bankshares will post 1.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eastern Bankshares Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. This is an increase from Eastern Bankshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. Eastern Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio is 33.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eastern Bankshares

In other news, Director Luis Borgen sold 1,710 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.71, for a total value of $38,834.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 20,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $464,987.25. The trade was a 7.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.26% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eastern Bankshares

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Eastern Bankshares by 32.3% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,166 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 529 shares during the period. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 7,092 shares of the company’s stock valued at $131,000 after acquiring an additional 543 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 36.4% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 584 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 27,812 shares of the company’s stock worth $513,000 after acquiring an additional 584 shares during the last quarter. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 179,379 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,739,000 after purchasing an additional 660 shares during the period. 71.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on EBC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Stephens initiated coverage on Eastern Bankshares in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $24.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Eastern Bankshares from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. DA Davidson initiated coverage on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a report on Friday, May 15th. They set a “buy” rating and a $24.00 target price for the company. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Eastern Bankshares from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $23.08.

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.