Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) Raised to Hold at Zacks Research

Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) was upgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. TD Cowen raised their price target on Eastern Bankshares from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Hovde Group assumed coverage on Eastern Bankshares in a research report on Monday, January 5th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $22.50 price objective for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, Barclays began coverage on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $22.00 price target for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $21.88.

Eastern Bankshares Price Performance

Shares of Eastern Bankshares stock opened at $19.04 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.01 billion, a PE ratio of 76.16 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Eastern Bankshares has a 12 month low of $13.51 and a 12 month high of $20.19. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $18.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $17.52.

Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $244.99 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $243.03 million. Eastern Bankshares had a net margin of 4.97% and a return on equity of 7.94%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Eastern Bankshares will post 1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Eastern Bankshares

In related news, Director Joseph F. Casey sold 322,771 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.03, for a total value of $6,142,332.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 36,112 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $687,211.36. This represents a 89.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Robert Francis Rivers bought 50,000 shares of Eastern Bankshares stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 28th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $17.21 per share, for a total transaction of $860,500.00. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 403,274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,940,345.54. This trade represents a 14.15% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Eastern Bankshares

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of EBC. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in Eastern Bankshares by 38.0% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 198,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,254,000 after buying an additional 54,664 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares during the first quarter valued at approximately $954,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in Eastern Bankshares by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 114,881 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,884,000 after acquiring an additional 5,028 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in Eastern Bankshares by 7.4% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 432,405 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,091,000 after acquiring an additional 29,781 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in Eastern Bankshares by 789.9% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 545,589 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,948,000 after purchasing an additional 484,277 shares during the last quarter. 71.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.