Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Has $156.32 Million Stock Holdings in Eastern Bankshares, Inc. $EBC

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors trimmed its Q3 stake in Eastern Bankshares by 4.2%, selling 377,687 shares and now holds 8,612,420 shares (~4.09%) worth about $156.32 million; institutional investors own 71.68% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but constructive: three Buy and three Hold ratings, an average price target of $22.13, with TD Cowen raising its target to $24 and Hovde/KBW assigning "outperform" ratings.
• Eastern beat quarterly estimates with $0.44 EPS (vs. $0.41) and $290.11M revenue, announced a $0.13 quarterly dividend (annualized $0.52, ~2.7% yield), and saw insider moves including the CAO selling 10,000 shares while the CFO bought 5,000 shares.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP reduced its stake in Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC - Free Report) by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,612,420 shares of the company's stock after selling 377,687 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 4.09% of Eastern Bankshares worth $156,316,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 8,112.5% in the 2nd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,971 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 1,947 shares during the period. Corsicana & Co. bought a new stake in Eastern Bankshares in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Federated Hermes Inc. acquired a new position in Eastern Bankshares during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $49,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Eastern Bankshares in the third quarter worth approximately $57,000. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its holdings in Eastern Bankshares by 29.9% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,718 shares of the company's stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 856 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.68% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on EBC. Zacks Research upgraded Eastern Bankshares from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a report on Friday, December 5th. Hovde Group assumed coverage on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Monday, January 5th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $22.50 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Eastern Bankshares from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $22.13.

Eastern Bankshares Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:EBC opened at $18.98 on Tuesday. The business's 50 day moving average is $20.18 and its 200 day moving average is $18.81. Eastern Bankshares, Inc. has a 12-month low of $13.51 and a 12-month high of $22.58. The stock has a market cap of $4.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.29 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The company reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.03. Eastern Bankshares had a return on equity of 8.25% and a net margin of 8.32%.The business had revenue of $290.11 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $287.09 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Eastern Bankshares, Inc. will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eastern Bankshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Eastern Bankshares's dividend payout ratio is currently 126.83%.

Insider Activity at Eastern Bankshares

In related news, CAO David Andrew Ahlquist sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.65, for a total transaction of $216,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 9,518 shares in the company, valued at approximately $206,064.70. The trade was a 51.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO R David Rosato bought 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $19.17 per share, for a total transaction of $95,850.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer directly owned 45,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $862,650. The trade was a 12.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.

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