Eastern (NASDAQ:EML) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

Eastern (NASDAQ:EML) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday.

Eastern Price Performance

Eastern stock opened at $28.96 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $179.06 million, a PE ratio of -28.12 and a beta of 0.98. Eastern has a 52-week low of $22.63 and a 52-week high of $35.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 2.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The company’s 50 day moving average is $27.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $29.22.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eastern

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in shares of Eastern by 218.2% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,120 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 768 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in shares of Eastern in the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eastern by 129.1% in the 3rd quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 3,086 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $100,000 after purchasing an additional 1,739 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Eastern by 277.7% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 6,875 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $223,000 after purchasing an additional 5,055 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Eastern in the 3rd quarter valued at $231,000. 76.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eastern Company Profile

The Eastern Company designs, manufactures, and sells engineered solutions to industrial markets in the United States and internationally. The company offers turnkey returnable packaging solutions, which are used in the assembly processes of vehicles, aircraft, and durable goods, as well as in production processes of plastic packaging products, packaged consumer goods, and pharmaceuticals; designs and manufactures blow mold tools and injection blow mold tooling products, and 2-step stretch blow molds and related components for the stretch blow molding industry; and supplies blow molds and change parts to the food, beverage, healthcare, and chemical industries.