Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. Takes $981,000 Position in Eastern Bankshares, Inc. $EBC

Key Points

• Jupiter Asset Management initiated a new position in Eastern Bankshares, buying 53,252 shares valued at about $981,000 in the fourth quarter.
• Institutional interest remains heavy, with several firms increasing holdings and 71.68% of Eastern Bankshares stock now owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.15 per share, but its latest earnings report missed estimates, with EPS of $0.40 versus $0.44 expected and revenue also coming in below forecasts.

Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 53,252 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $981,000.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in EBC. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 38.0% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 198,421 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,254,000 after buying an additional 54,664 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares in the 1st quarter valued at about $954,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 114,881 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,884,000 after buying an additional 5,028 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 7.4% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 432,405 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,091,000 after buying an additional 29,781 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 789.9% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 545,589 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,948,000 after buying an additional 484,277 shares during the period. 71.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eastern Bankshares

In other Eastern Bankshares news, CFO R David Rosato bought 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were purchased 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $862,650. This represents a 12.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on EBC shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Eastern Bankshares from a "hold (c)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Piper Sandler started coverage on Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Monday, March 16th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $23.00 target price for the company. DA Davidson began coverage on Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Friday, May 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $24.00 target price for the company. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Eastern Bankshares from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Eastern Bankshares from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $22.92.

Eastern Bankshares Price Performance

EBC stock opened at $19.73 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.08 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. Eastern Bankshares, Inc. has a 52-week low of $14.10 and a 52-week high of $22.58. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $19.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $19.63.

Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.44 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $295.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $308.68 million. Eastern Bankshares had a net margin of 26.28% and a return on equity of 8.42%. Research analysts expect that Eastern Bankshares, Inc. will post 1.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eastern Bankshares Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. This is a boost from Eastern Bankshares's previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. Eastern Bankshares's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.21%.

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.

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