Daisy Ha Sells 31,020 Shares of Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE) Stock

Hope Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOPE) Director Daisy Ha sold 31,020 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.48, for a total transaction of $387,129.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Hope Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ:HOPE opened at $12.51 on Friday. Hope Bancorp, Inc. has a 52-week low of $8.82 and a 52-week high of $12.79. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $11.51 and a 200 day moving average of $10.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.20 and a beta of 0.87.

Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.26 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $145.76 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $142.90 million. Hope Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.09% and a net margin of 5.81%.The company’s revenue was up 23.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.20 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Hope Bancorp, Inc. will post 1.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hope Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 6th will be issued a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 6th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.5%. Hope Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 121.74%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Hope Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hope Bancorp in a report on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Hope Bancorp from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Zacks Research lowered Hope Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $14.50 price target on shares of Hope Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $13.75.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hope Bancorp

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Hope Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Hope Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. CKW Financial Group bought a new position in shares of Hope Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in Hope Bancorp by 294.0% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,428 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 2,558 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Hope Bancorp by 61.0% in the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 3,968 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 1,503 shares during the last quarter. 84.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Hope Bancorp

Hope Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Hope Bank, a California-chartered financial institution serving small and middle-market businesses, professionals and affluent individuals. The company’s principal activities include accepting a variety of deposit products—such as checking accounts, savings and money market accounts, and time deposits—and extending commercial credit facilities. With a focus on community banking, Hope Bancorp tailors its offerings to meet the needs of clients in diverse industries, including real estate, professional services and import/export trade.

In its lending business, Hope Bancorp provides commercial real estate loans, construction financing, working capital lines of credit and equipment financing.