Brown Advisory Inc. Sells 1,323,907 Shares of Eastern Bankshares, Inc. $EBC

Brown Advisory Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) by 33.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,580,615 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,323,907 shares during the quarter. Brown Advisory Inc.’s holdings in Eastern Bankshares were worth $47,561,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 87.1% in 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 boosted its position 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 worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 1,600 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in Eastern Bankshares by 36.4% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,189 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 584 shares in the last quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new position in Eastern Bankshares in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new position in Eastern Bankshares in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $60,000. 71.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Eastern Bankshares Price Performance

EBC opened at $20.75 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Eastern Bankshares, Inc. has a 52 week low of $14.10 and a 52 week high of $22.58. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $19.82. The company has a market capitalization of $4.80 billion, a PE ratio of 11.66 and a beta of 0.69.

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

Eastern Bankshares Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. This is a positive change from Eastern Bankshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. Eastern Bankshares’s payout ratio is 33.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EBC has been the subject of a number of research reports. DA Davidson initiated coverage on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Friday, May 15th. They set a “buy” rating and a $24.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on Eastern Bankshares from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Barclays dropped 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 report on Monday, April 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Eastern Bankshares from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.92.

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.