Renaissance Technologies LLC Sells 116,149 Shares of Eastern Bankshares, Inc. $EBC

Renaissance Technologies LLC trimmed its position in Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) by 28.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 296,870 shares of the company’s stock after selling 116,149 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned about 0.13% of Eastern Bankshares worth $5,807,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EBC. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,874,030 shares of the company’s stock worth $403,138,000 after buying an additional 2,440,017 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 33.0% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,728,558 shares of the company’s stock valued at $253,018,000 after acquiring an additional 3,407,066 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,552,160 shares of the company’s stock valued at $176,048,000 after acquiring an additional 939,740 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 18.5% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 8,919,404 shares of the company’s stock valued at $164,385,000 after acquiring an additional 1,389,304 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Eastern Bankshares by 185.9% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,437,108 shares of the company’s stock worth $137,066,000 after acquiring an additional 4,835,474 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.68% of the company’s stock.

Eastern Bankshares Price Performance

EBC opened at $23.19 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $21.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $20.68. Eastern Bankshares, Inc. has a twelve month low of $14.95 and a twelve month high of $23.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company has a market capitalization of $5.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.18 and a beta of 0.68.

Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $316.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $308.20 million. Eastern Bankshares had a net margin of 25.12% and a return on equity of 8.71%. Equities analysts expect that Eastern Bankshares, Inc. will post 1.88 EPS for the current year.

Eastern Bankshares Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Eastern Bankshares’s payout ratio is 34.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Seaport Research Partners reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $27.00 price objective on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Eastern Bankshares from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Stephens downgraded shares of Eastern Bankshares from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $24.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Eastern Bankshares from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Hovde Group increased their price target on shares of Eastern Bankshares from $23.50 to $26.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $24.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eastern Bankshares

In related news, Director Luis Borgen sold 1,710 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.71, for a total transaction of $38,834.10. Following the sale, the director directly owned 20,475 shares in the company, valued at approximately $464,987.25. The trade was a 7.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.26% of the company’s stock.

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.