Eastern Bankshares, Inc. 10-K

ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT'S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED SHAREHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES Market Information Eastern Bankshares, Inc.’s common stock trades on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol EBC. As of February 10, 2023, there were 8,175 common shareholders of record based on information provided by our transfer agent. The number of record-holders may not reflect the number of persons or entities holding stock in nominee name through banks, brokerage firms and other nominees. Comparative Stock Performance Graph The stock performance graph below and associated table compare the cumulative total shareholder return of our common stock from October 15, 2020 to December 31, 2022 to the cumulative total return of the Russell 2000 Index and the KBW Regional Banking Index. The lines in the graph and the numbers in the table below represent quarterly index levels derived from the compounded daily returns that include reinvestment or retention of all dividends. If the quarterly interval, based on the last day of a quarter, was not a trading day, the preceding trading day was used. The index value for all of the series was set to $100.00 on October 15, 2020 (which assumes that $100.00 was invested in each of the series on October 15, 2020). The following information in this Item 5 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K is not deemed to be “soliciting material” or to be “filed” with the SEC or subject to Regulation 14A or 14C under the Exchange Act or to the liabilities of Section 18 of the Exchange Act and will not be deemed incorporated by reference into any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Exchange Act, except to the extent we specifically incorporate it by reference into such a filing. The stock price performance shown on the stock performance graph and associated table below is not necessarily indicative of future price performance. Information used in the graph and table was obtained from a third party provider, a source believed to be reliable, but we are not responsible for any errors or omission in such information. 53 Period Ending Index 10/15/2020 12/31/2020 03/31/2021 06/30/2021 9/30/2021 Eastern Bankshares, Inc. 100.00 134.24 159.29 170.48 168.94 Russell 2000 100.00 120.82 136.16 142.00 135.81 KBW Regional Banks 100.00 134.82 174.87 172.39 177.93 Index 12/31/2021 3/31/2022 6/30/2022 9/30/2022 12/31/2022 Eastern Bankshares, Inc. 168.53 180.81 155.75 166.55 147.04 Russell 2000 138.72 128.28 106.22 103.90 110.37 KBW Regional Banks 184.23 180.21 158.61 164.85 171.46 Source: Zacks Investment Research, Inc. © 1980-2023 Dividends We intend to continue to pay regular cash dividends to holders of our common stock; however, any future determination to declare and pay cash dividends, if any, will be made at the discretion of our Board of Directors and will depend on a variety of factors, including applicable laws, our financial condition, results of operations, business prospects, general business or financial market conditions, regulatory environment and other factors our Board of Directors may deem relevant. To the extent dividends from Eastern Bank will be a source of cash used by the Company to pay its dividends, dividends from the Bank will be dependent on the Bank’s future earnings, capital requirements, and financial condition. Repurchases of Common Shares As further detailed below, we have received notices of non-objection from the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System to two share repurchase programs, one allowing the purchase of up to 9,337,900 shares of our common stock, which we competed in the third quarter of 2022, and the other allowing the purchase of up to 8,900,000 shares through August 31, 2023. Repurchases are made at management’s discretion from time to time at prices management considers to be attractive and in the best interests of both the Company and its shareholders, subject to the availability of shares, general market conditions, the trading price of the shares, alternative uses for capital and liquidity, and our financial performance. Repurchases may be suspended, terminated or modified by us at any time for any reason. Information regarding the shares repurchased under the plans is presented in the following table: Period Total Number of Shares Repurchased Average Price Paid per Share Total Number of Shares Repurchased as Part of the Share Repurchase Programs Maximum Number of Shares That May Yet Be Purchased Under the Share Repurchase Programs (1)(2) December 1, 2021 –  December 31, 2021 1,135,878 $ 20.42 1,135,878 8,202,022 January 1, 2022 –  January 31, 2022 987,526 21.02 2,123,404 7,214,496 February 1, 2022 –  February 28, 2022 1,109,697 21.08 3,233,101 6,104,799 March 1, 2022 –  March 31, 2022 769,398 21.31 4,002,499 5,335,401 April 1, 2022 – April 30, 2022 1,194,185 20.19 5,196,684 4,141,216 May 1, 2022 – May 31, 2022 1,880,381 18.93 7,077,065 2,260,835 June 1, 2022 – June 30, 2022 1,141,903 18.78 8,218,968 1,118,932 July 1, 2022 – July 31, 2022 909,785 19.02 9,128,753 209,147 August 1, 2022 – August 31, 2022 — — 9,128,753 209,147 September 1, 2022 – September 30, 2022 571,463 20.33 9,700,216 8,537,684 October 1, 2022 – October 31, 2022 1,094,049 20.32 10,794,265 7,443,635 November 1, 2022 – November 30, 2022 453,885 18.91 11,248,150 6,989,750 December 1, 2022 –  December 31, 2022 — — 11,248,150 6,989,750 Total 11,248,150 $ 19.97 (1) On October 28, 2021, we announced that our Board of Directors had approved a share repurchase program, subject to receipt of a notice of non-objection from the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (“Non-Objection Notice”). On November 12, 2021, we announced we had received the Non-Objection Notice to the share repurchase program, which authorized the purchase of up 54 to 9,337,900 shares over a 12-month period. The program was limited to $225.0 million through November 30, 2022. We completed the repurchase of the total number of shares authorized through this program during the third quarter of 2022. (2) On September 7, 2022, we announced receipt of a notice of non-objection from the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System for a new share repurchase program. The program, which authorizes the purchase of up to 8,900,000 shares over a 12-month period, is limited to $200.0 million through August 31, 2023. ITEM 6. [RESERVED] 55