Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) shares gapped down prior to trading on Friday following a dissappointing earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $16.72, but opened at $16.06. Eastern Bankshares shares last traded at $16.06, with a volume of 161,488 shares changing hands.

The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $299.55 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $215.92 million. Eastern Bankshares had a return on equity of 5.06% and a net margin of 48.38%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.32 earnings per share.

Eastern Bankshares Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 3rd will be given a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.02%. This is a positive change from Eastern Bankshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 3rd. Eastern Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.44%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on EBC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $19.00 target price (up previously from $17.00) on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research report on Monday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Eastern Bankshares from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $14.00 to $18.50 in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th.

Insider Activity at Eastern Bankshares

In other Eastern Bankshares news, President Quincy Lee Miller sold 12,676 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.66, for a total transaction of $211,182.16. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.15% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eastern Bankshares

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of EBC. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 18.3% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 5,194 shares of the company’s stock worth $85,000 after acquiring an additional 802 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in Eastern Bankshares by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 44,452 shares of the company’s stock worth $621,000 after purchasing an additional 814 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 6.0% during the second quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 38,478 shares of the company’s stock valued at $538,000 after buying an additional 2,173 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 8.5% during the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 27,866 shares of the company’s stock worth $384,000 after buying an additional 2,193 shares during the period. 71.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eastern Bankshares Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.59 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $16.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $14.88.

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.