Sr. Research Analyst - Institutional Loans

Senior Research Analyst - Institutional Loans (Boston)

Hiring Range: $159,391 $207,208 

The posted salary range reflects Eastern’s expected hiring range. Actual pay may vary based on experience, skills, and market factors; additional compensation may apply. Eastern offers a robust benefits and retirement package. Please see the description of benefits included with this job posting for additional information.

The Senior Research Analyst – Institutional Loan, will provide support to the Head of Institutional Loans to build and manage a portfolio of institutional loans (aka Term Loan B’s) in a variety of sectors. Broad responsibilities will include identifying appropriate investment opportunities based on credit fundamentals of the issuer & sector and the bank’s credit risk appetite, monitoring the portfolio closely for financial & business updates and making timely buy, sell, hold recommendations to the Head of Institutional Loans. The candidate should have the ability to work and present credits independently with minimal supervision and work collaboratively with the business, credit, internal audit and back office for credit approvals and on-boarding of companies. The position will also interact with senior management of portfolio companies & sponsors, sell-side and buyside as part of investment diligence and ongoing monitoring of the portfolio. Finally, the position requires presentation of new & existing credits at various credit committees at the bank.

Policy and Procedures

• Subject matter expert in policy and procedures and provide guidance to the RM and other PMs on policy and procedure applications. 
• Strong knowledge, compliance and application of credit policy and procedures to maintain high quality credit administration of Commercial customers with no direct guidance.
• Proactive and independent risk rating analysis and recommendation
• Identification and documentation of exceptions to policy

Credit underwriting 

• Independently underwrite complex transactions. 
• High quality credit analysis which will include cash flow modeling and credit risk-based memos.
• Financial analysis with focus on key drivers and detailed base case and downside case projection models 
• Clear articulation of key investment thesis and key credit risks & mitigants.
• Succinct and informed presentations at the Credit Committee with timely & accurate responses to credit committee members
• Review of the legal documents and third-party legal review reports and highlight risks in the underwriting document

Portfolio Management:

• Completion of timely quarterly tear sheets with financial &business updates and buy/sell/hold recommendations based on credit fundamentals
• Update base case models for actual performance and refreshed assumptions at least once a quarter
• Complete Annual Reviews as required per policy 
• Present updates on issuers at quarterly portfolio review meetings
• Refresh approval timeline windows as needed
• Proactive identification and surfacing of risks to the Head of Institutional Loans and management.
• Follow news and business updates of assigned portfolio companies, their peers and the sector and discuss with the Head of Institutional Loans daily and/or during staff meetings. 
• Work with the Head of Institutional Loans to build a pipeline of new secondary ideas.

Training Responsibilities 

• Provide on the job training in underwriting, policy and procedure application, nCino and portfolio management to junior members of the portfolio management team 
• Be an ongoing resource in immediate group and a resource, as needed, to other senior members of the commercial banking group.

Special Projects:

• Build relationships with the sell side and build a network of buy side peers to diligence deals, monitor portfolio and improve market savviness.
• Lead and/or participate in various technology & portfolio management projects to build & monitor the Term Loan B portfolio 
• Attend Leveraged Loan and High Yield conferences
• Be a lead or participant in other commercial banking projects as needed

Education and Experience :

• Minimum college degree required. 

• Concentration in Finance, Economics and/or Accounting preferred. CFA preferred. 

• Formal credit training preferred.

• 8+ years experience in commercial credit analysis, with strong preference for Leveraged Finance and/or buy side experience 

• Strong analytical & interpersonal service skills and passion for research.

• Critical thinker.

• Strong team player, positive attitude and coachable.

Skills/Knowledge 

• Strong MS Excel skills

• nCino/SalesForce expertise