Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) Shares Sold by Polaris Capital Management LLC

Polaris Capital Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) by 11.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 654,366 shares of the company’s stock after selling 87,000 shares during the period. Polaris Capital Management LLC owned 0.30% of Eastern Bankshares worth $11,288,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vest Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 61.1% in the fourth quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 142,095 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,451,000 after purchasing an additional 53,871 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in Eastern Bankshares by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,028,897 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,498,000 after purchasing an additional 59,339 shares during the period. KBC Group NV raised its position in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 69.5% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 9,246 shares of the company’s stock worth $159,000 after buying an additional 3,791 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in Eastern Bankshares by 479.2% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 43,929 shares of the company’s stock valued at $758,000 after acquiring an additional 36,344 shares during the period. Finally, Enterprise Bank & Trust Co lifted its stake in shares of Eastern Bankshares by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Enterprise Bank & Trust Co now owns 24,234 shares of the company’s stock valued at $418,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. 71.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eastern Bankshares Trading Down 0.5 %

NASDAQ:EBC opened at $18.74 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.02 billion, a PE ratio of 27.97 and a beta of 0.94. Eastern Bankshares, Inc. has a 52 week low of $12.22 and a 52 week high of $19.40. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $17.72 and a 200-day moving average of $17.08.

Eastern Bankshares (NASDAQ:EBC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.05. Eastern Bankshares had a return on equity of 6.02% and a net margin of 11.07%. As a group, analysts predict that Eastern Bankshares, Inc. will post 1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eastern Bankshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.56%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 4th. Eastern Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio is currently 71.64%.

Insider Transactions at Eastern Bankshares

In other news, Director Deborah C. Jackson sold 5,713 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.56, for a total value of $106,033.28. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 67,284 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,248,791.04. This represents a 7.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.15% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $22.00 target price (up previously from $21.00) on shares of Eastern Bankshares in a research note on Monday, January 27th.

Eastern Bankshares 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.