BOSTON, April 11, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Meridian Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: EBSB), the holding company for East Boston Savings Bank, announced that it has adopted a new stock repurchase program for up to 500,000 shares, or approximately 0.9% of its outstanding common stock. This new stock repurchase program was adopted following receipt of non-objection from the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. This is the Company’s second stock repurchase program since completing its mutual-to-stock conversion and related stock offering in July 2014. The Company’s first stock repurchase program for 3,373,621 shares was completed in January 2019.

Repurchases will be made no sooner than the termination of the Company’s regular quarterly trading blackout following the Company’s public release of its results of operations for the quarter ended March 31, 2019, and consistent with the Company’s trading policies. 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.

Meridian Bancorp, Inc. is the holding company for East Boston Savings Bank. East Boston Savings Bank, a Massachusetts-chartered stock savings bank founded in 1848, operates 38 branches in the greater Boston metropolitan area, including 37 full-service locations and one mobile branch. We offer a variety of deposit and loan products to individuals and businesses located in our primary market, which consists of Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk and Suffolk Counties, Massachusetts. For additional information, visit www.ebsb.com.