EAST BOSTON, Mass., March 26, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Richard J. Gavegnano, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Meridian Interstate Bancorp, Inc. (Nasdaq:EBSB), announced today that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Office of the Commissioner of Banks has approved the Company's application to repurchase up to 5% of its outstanding common stock, or 517,500 shares of its common stock.
Shares may be repurchased in open market or private transactions, through block trades, or pursuant to any trading plan that may be adopted in accordance with Rule 10b5-1 of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Repurchases will be made at management's discretion at prices management considers to be attractive and in the best interests of both the Company and its stockholders, subject to the availability of stock, general market conditions, the trading price of the stock, alternative uses for capital, and the Company's financial performance. Open market purchases will be subject to the limitations set forth in Rule 10b-18 of the Securities and Exchange Commission and other applicable legal requirements.
Repurchases under this authorization may be suspended, terminated or modified by the Company at any time for any reason, including market conditions, the cost of repurchasing shares, the availability of alternative investment opportunities, liquidity, and other factors deemed appropriate. These factors may also affect the timing and amount of share repurchases. The Company is not obligated to repurchase any particular number of shares.
Certain statements herein constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements may be identified by words such as "believes," "will," "expects," "project," "may," "could," "developments," "strategic," "launching," "opportunities," "anticipates," "estimates," "intends," "plans," "targets" and similar expressions. These statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of Meridian Interstate Bancorp, Inc.'s management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements as a result of numerous factors. Factors that could cause such differences to exist include, but are not limited to, general economic conditions, changes in interest rates, regulatory considerations, and competition and the risk factors described in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2008, as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Should one or more of these risks materialize or should underlying beliefs or assumptions prove incorrect, Meridian Interstate Bancorp, Inc.'s actual results could differ materially from those discussed. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this release.
Meridian Interstate Bancorp, Inc. is the holding company for East Boston Savings Bank. East Boston Savings Bank is a Massachusetts chartered stock savings bank that operates from 12 full service locations in the greater Boston metropolitan area. At December 31, 2008, the Company had total assets of $1.1 billion, total deposits of $797 million and total stockholders' equity of $190 million.