Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) Given "Sell (D+)" Rating at Weiss Ratings

Key Points

• Eastern Bankshares received a "Sell (D+)" rating from Weiss Ratings, while other analysts, including Cowen, initiated coverage with a "Buy" rating.
• Shares of Eastern Bankshares traded down to $18.65, with a market capitalization of $3.94 billion and a 1-year price range of $13.51 to $19.40.
• Institutional investors own 71.68% of Eastern Bankshares, with notable increases in holdings from funds such as HoldCo Asset Management and Jupiter Asset Management.

Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "sell (d+)" rating restated by analysts at Weiss Ratings in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on EBC. Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $23.00 target price for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Eastern Bankshares has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $21.50.

Eastern Bankshares Price Performance

Shares of Eastern Bankshares stock traded down $0.08 on Wednesday, hitting $18.65. 4,048,688 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,418,416. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -60.16 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $16.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $15.89. Eastern Bankshares has a 1-year low of $13.51 and a 1-year high of $19.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $249.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $241.32 million. Eastern Bankshares had a positive return on equity of 7.35% and a negative net margin of 6.49%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Eastern Bankshares will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, President Quincy Lee Miller purchased 13,706 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 27th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $17.07 per share, with a total value of $233,961.42. Following the completion of the purchase, the president owned 13,706 shares in the company, valued at $233,961.42. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eastern Bankshares

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of EBC. HoldCo Asset Management LP purchased a new position in Eastern Bankshares during the 2nd quarter valued at about $79,534,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Eastern Bankshares in the second quarter valued at approximately $34,680,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 15.7% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,019,676 shares of the company's stock valued at $131,522,000 after acquiring an additional 1,087,206 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 341.8% during the second quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 1,001,190 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,288,000 after acquiring an additional 774,553 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. raised its holdings in Eastern Bankshares by 457.9% in the second quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 856,819 shares of the company's stock worth $13,084,000 after purchasing an additional 703,237 shares in the last quarter. 71.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Eastern Bankshares Company Profile

Eastern Bankshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Eastern Bank that provides banking products and services primarily to retail, commercial, and small business customers. The company provides deposit accounts, interest checking accounts, money market accounts, savings accounts, and time certificates of deposit accounts.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.