Eastern (NASDAQ:EML) Director Peggy Scott Purchases 1,176 Shares of Stock

Eastern Company (The) (NASDAQ:EML) Director Peggy Scott bought 1,176 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $21.40 per share, with a total value of $25,166.40. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 26,262 shares in the company, valued at $562,006.80. This represents a 4.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Eastern Trading Up 0.2%

EML opened at $21.92 on Thursday. Eastern Company has a 12 month low of $17.61 and a 12 month high of $26.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $132.18 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.83 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 3.52 and a quick ratio of 1.64. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $21.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $20.04.

Eastern (NASDAQ:EML) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 12th. The industrial products company reported $0.11 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.50 by ($0.39). The company had revenue of $59.68 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $67.74 million. Eastern had a return on equity of 5.46% and a net margin of 2.41%.

Eastern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. Eastern’s payout ratio is 45.83%.

Institutional Trading of Eastern

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in Eastern by 82.9% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,273 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 577 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in Eastern by 295.9% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,738 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 1,299 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth purchased a new stake in shares of Eastern in the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Eastern in the 2nd quarter valued at about $70,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp purchased a new stake in shares of Eastern in the 1st quarter valued at about $73,000. 76.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Royal Bank Of Canada downgraded Eastern from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold”.

About Eastern

Eastern (NASDAQ:EML), based in West Haven, Connecticut, is a diversified industrial manufacturer specializing in secure hardware and metal finishing services. The company operates through two primary segments: Industrial Hardware Products and Security Products, complemented by a Metal Coatings division. Its Industrial Hardware Products segment produces cold-headed fasteners, forgings, hinges and precision components for heavy commercial vehicles, hydraulic cylinders and industrial machinery.

The Security Products segment designs and manufactures a wide range of lock and latch solutions, including padlocks, door hardware, cabinet locks and rental security towers for commercial and institutional applications.