Geode Capital Management LLC Increases Stake in Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC)

On December 21, 2024, it was revealed that Geode Capital Management LLC has raised its position in Eastern Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBC) by 23.0% during the third quarter, as detailed in its latest SEC filing. The institutional investor now holds 4,587,497 shares of Eastern Bankshares after acquiring an additional 859,136 shares in the quarter. As a result, Geode Capital Management's ownership represents approximately 2.14% of Eastern Bankshares, amounting to a valuation of $75,203,000 based on the most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also adjusted their shareholdings in Eastern Bankshares. Notably, M&T Bank Corp established a new stake valued at around $511,000 in the third quarter. Meanwhile, Barclays PLC significantly boosted its holdings by 284.1%, acquiring a total of 617,306 shares valued at $10,118,000 after purchasing an additional 456,586 shares during the period. Furthermore, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position by 127.8%, now holding 1,800 shares worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 1,010 shares last quarter. Other hedge funds, including Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC and EP Wealth Advisors LLC, also made new investments in Eastern Bankshares during the third quarter, with values of $180,000 and $232,000, respectively. Currently, 71.68% of the company's stock is held by hedge funds and institutional investors.

Analysts' Outlook for Eastern Bankshares

In a separate development, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods updated their price target for Eastern Bankshares, raising it from $19.00 to $21.00, while assigning an “outperform” rating in a research note dated December 4th.

Insider Transactions at Eastern Bankshares

In related news, Director Deborah C. Jackson sold 5,713 shares of Eastern Bankshares on December 2nd for an average price of $18.56, totaling $106,033.28. Following this sale, Jackson now holds 67,284 shares valued at approximately $1,248,791.04, reflecting a decrease of 7.83% in her ownership. This transaction was formally disclosed in a filing with the SEC, indicating that corporate insiders own about 1.15% of Eastern Bankshares stock.

Stock Performance

As of the latest trading session, Eastern Bankshares' shares opened at $17.26. The company has a market capitalization of $3.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.44, and a beta of 0.92. Its 50-day moving average stands at $17.74, while the 200-day moving average is at $16.16. Over the past year, Eastern Bankshares has experienced a 52-week low of $12.22 and a high of $19.40.

In its most recent earnings report released on October 24th, Eastern Bankshares reported earnings of $0.25 per share, which was below the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.08. The company generated revenue of $299.55 million for the quarter, surpassing the analyst expectations of $215.92 million. Eastern Bankshares reported a net margin of 38.00% and a return on equity of 4.49%. The earnings from the same period last year were $0.32 per share. Analysts are projecting that Eastern Bankshares will post an earnings per share of 0.98 for the current fiscal year.

Increase in Dividend Payout

Furthermore, Eastern Bankshares has declared a quarterly dividend which was paid out on December 16th. Shareholders on record by December 3rd received a dividend of $0.12 per share, which represents an annualized dividend of $0.48 and a yield of 2.78%. This dividend payout is an increase from the previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date for this dividend was also December 3rd, and the company's dividend payout ratio is currently at 20.69%.

Overview of Eastern Bankshares

Eastern Bankshares, Inc. functions as the bank holding company for Eastern Bank, offering a range of banking products and services mainly targeting retail, commercial, and small business clients. These offerings include deposit accounts, interest checking accounts, money market accounts, savings accounts, and time certificates of deposit.

Geode, Eastern, Shares