Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) Stock Rating Upgraded by Zacks Research

Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

EBC has been the topic of several other reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Barclays started 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 target for the company. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price target on Eastern Bankshares from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $21.88.

Eastern Bankshares Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EBC opened at $19.04 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $18.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $17.52. Eastern Bankshares has a 52-week low of $13.51 and a 52-week high of $20.19. The company has a market cap of $4.01 billion, a PE ratio of 76.16 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Joseph F. Casey sold 322,771 shares of the firm’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 completion of the transaction, 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO R David Rosato purchased 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 28th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $17.08 per share, with a total value of $170,800.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer owned 30,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $512,400. The trade was a 50.00% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eastern Bankshares

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 26.8% in the 4th quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC now owns 14,498 shares of the company’s stock worth $267,000 after buying an additional 3,065 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in Eastern Bankshares by 19.6% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 65,595 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,209,000 after acquiring an additional 10,747 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Eastern Bankshares by 7.4% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,393,923 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,300,000 after purchasing an additional 95,731 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake 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 valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 584 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $381,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.68% of the company’s stock.

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.