Geode Capital Management LLC Has $100.05 Million Stock Holdings in Eastern Bankshares, Inc. $EBC

Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) by 12.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,427,922 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 592,012 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Eastern Bankshares were worth $100,050,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Minerva Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Eastern Bankshares in the fourth quarter worth about $1,153,000. Sandy Cove Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Eastern Bankshares during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,109,000. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 214,136 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,947,000 after purchasing an additional 13,771 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Eastern Bankshares during the 4th quarter valued at about $110,000. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Eastern Bankshares during the 4th quarter valued at about $211,000. 71.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EBC has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays cut their target price on Eastern Bankshares from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Stephens initiated coverage on Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $24.00 target price on the stock. 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 initiated coverage on Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Monday, March 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $23.00 target price on the stock. Finally, DA Davidson initiated coverage on Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Friday, May 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $24.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.92.

Eastern Bankshares Stock Down 1.2%

NASDAQ:EBC opened at $19.85 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.15 and a beta of 0.69. Eastern Bankshares, Inc. has a twelve month low of $14.10 and a twelve month high of $22.58. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $19.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $19.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 return on equity of 8.42% and a net margin of 26.28%. Equities research analysts expect that Eastern Bankshares, Inc. will post 1.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eastern Bankshares Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This is a positive change from Eastern Bankshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Eastern Bankshares’s payout ratio is presently 29.21%.

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.