Eastern (NASDAQ:EML) Director James Mitarotonda Buys 1,679 Shares of Stock

Eastern Company (The) (NASDAQ:EML) Director James Mitarotonda purchased 1,679 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $21.40 per share, for a total transaction of $35,930.60. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 46,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $988,466. This represents a 3.77% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Eastern Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:EML opened at $21.92 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 3.52 and a quick ratio of 1.64. Eastern Company has a 1-year low of $17.61 and a 1-year high of $26.77. The company has a market capitalization of $132.18 million, a P/E ratio of 22.83 and a beta of 0.87. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $21.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $20.04.

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

Eastern Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EML. Teton Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Eastern in the third quarter worth about $3,293,000. Sei Investments Co. bought a new position in shares of Eastern in the first quarter worth about $940,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eastern by 15.6% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 133,237 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,697,000 after purchasing an additional 18,000 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Eastern by 3,259.7% in the fourth quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 13,674 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $269,000 after purchasing an additional 13,267 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management grew its holdings in shares of Eastern by 71.5% in the third quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 23,403 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $549,000 after purchasing an additional 9,753 shares during the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.