Insider Selling: Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) Insider Sells $427,458.16 in Stock

Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) insider Donald Michael Westermann sold 21,256 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.11, for a total transaction of $427,458.16. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 20,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $419,494.60. This trade represents a 50.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Eastern Bankshares Stock Performance

NASDAQ:EBC opened at $20.49 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $19.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.86. 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, Inc. has a twelve month low of $13.51 and a twelve month high of $20.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.98 and a beta of 0.81.

Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $243.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $287.09 million. Eastern Bankshares had a return on equity of 8.62% and a net margin of 8.32%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Eastern Bankshares, Inc. will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eastern Bankshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. Eastern Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 126.83%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Eastern Bankshares from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. TD Cowen raised their target price on Eastern Bankshares from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Barclays started coverage on Eastern Bankshares in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $22.00 target price on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, Hovde Group assumed coverage on Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Monday, January 5th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $22.50 price objective for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $22.13.

Institutional Trading of Eastern Bankshares

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in Eastern Bankshares by 36.4% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 584 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its stake in Eastern Bankshares by 0.4% during the second 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 last quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in Eastern Bankshares by 6.0% in the second quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 13,102 shares of the company’s stock worth $200,000 after purchasing an additional 740 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Eastern Bankshares by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 13,619 shares of the company’s stock worth $251,000 after purchasing an additional 820 shares during the period. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Eastern Bankshares by 2.8% during the second quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 30,532 shares of the company’s stock valued at $466,000 after purchasing an additional 840 shares during the last quarter. 71.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.