East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have issued a hold recommendation and eleven have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $125.0769.

Several research firms have issued reports on EWBC. Truist Financial boosted their price target on East West Bancorp from $112.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Citigroup lifted their price objective on East West Bancorp from $124.00 to $134.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of East West Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $124.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, September 8th.

East West Bancorp Stock Up 2.4%

Shares of East West Bancorp stock opened at $115.06 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $107.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $105.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.83 billion, a PE ratio of 12.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.88. East West Bancorp has a 52-week low of $68.27 and a 52-week high of $117.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.89.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, December 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $627.36 million during the quarter. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 15.55% and a net margin of 27.16%. On average, analysts anticipate that East West Bancorp will post 8.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 3rd were paid a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 3rd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently 26.46%.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Parker Shi sold 8,844 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.03, for a total transaction of $1,017,325.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 14,950 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,719,698.50. The trade was a 37.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.04, for a total value of $1,000,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 45,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,551,820. This represents a 18.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 73,344 shares of company stock worth $8,184,226. 1.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On East West Bancorp

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 5.8% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 339,136 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,101,000 after purchasing an additional 18,696 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in East West Bancorp by 29.0% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 899 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 176.0% during the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,932 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $216,000 after buying an additional 1,232 shares during the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd raised its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 76.4% during the 3rd quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 6,300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $671,000 after buying an additional 2,729 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 108.8% in the 3rd quarter. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. now owns 22,137 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,356,000 after buying an additional 11,537 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

East West Bancorp Company Profile

East West Bancorp, Inc is a bank holding company and the parent of East West Bank, one of the largest independent banks headquartered in Southern California. As a full-service commercial bank, it provides a broad range of financial products and services to business and individual customers, including commercial and residential real estate lending, working capital lines of credit, trade finance, and deposit and treasury management services. The company caters to both large and middle-market businesses, leveraging its expertise to serve clients engaged in cross-border trade and investment between the United States and Greater China.

Founded in Los Angeles in the early 1970s, East West Bank has grown steadily through organic expansion and strategic branch openings.