Eastern Bankshares reports Q4 operating EPS 10c, consensus 20c

“2023 was a year of strategic repositioning for Eastern,” said Bob Rivers, Chief Executive Officer and Chair of the Board of Eastern Bankshares, Inc. and Eastern Bank. “We realized early in 2023 that all banks were going to face significant challenges due to higher interest rates, changing customer deposit preferences and a very difficult macroeconomic environment. We responded by repositioning our securities portfolio in the first quarter, which allowed us to improve both our liquidity and earnings outlook, and followed with the sale of Eastern Insurance in the second half of the year to capitalize on the valuation premium it commanded. The insurance transaction provided us additional liquidity and capital, and positioned us to announce our merger with Cambridge Bancorp, a highly attractive in-market merger partner with a valuable wealth management business. We are very confident that these transactions provide us with a greater financial foundation, stronger earnings for our shareholders, and a leading market share in our footprint. The upcoming merger is the next step in our journey and we all look forward to welcoming the colleagues and customers of Cambridge Trust to Eastern.”