Eastern (NASDAQ:EML) Raised to Strong-Buy at StockNews.com

Eastern (NASDAQ:EML) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Wednesday.

Eastern Stock Performance

NASDAQ EML traded up $1.22 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $27.88. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 6,129 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,925. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $27.88 and a 200 day moving average price of $29.31. Eastern has a 12 month low of $22.63 and a 12 month high of $35.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $172.38 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -27.07 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 2.64, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eastern

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EML. MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Eastern by 129.1% in the third quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 3,086 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $100,000 after purchasing an additional 1,739 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Eastern during the second quarter worth about $110,000. Rhumbline Advisers bought a new position in Eastern in the 2nd quarter valued at about $134,000. Barclays PLC raised its position 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 buying an additional 5,055 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Eastern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $231,000. 76.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Eastern

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.