AlphaQuest LLC Boosts Stock Position in East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

AlphaQuest LLC raised its position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 156.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,905 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 23,125 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $4,035,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 880.7% in the 2nd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 21,625 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,184,000 after purchasing an additional 19,420 shares during the last quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. increased its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 249.8% during the 2nd quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 13,111 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,324,000 after buying an additional 9,363 shares during the last quarter. Aurora Investment Counsel purchased a new position in shares of East West Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth $2,029,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 90.4% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 311,233 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,428,000 after buying an additional 147,792 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in East West Bancorp by 2,084.8% in the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 53,221 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,665,000 after acquiring an additional 50,785 shares during the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

East West Bancorp stock opened at $114.42 on Friday. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 12-month low of $68.27 and a 12-month high of $119.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The company has a market capitalization of $15.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.88. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $112.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $107.01.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.04. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 15.72% and a net margin of 28.36%.The company had revenue of $754.92 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $745.04 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.10 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 8.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 2nd. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. This is a boost from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.21%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 10,000 shares of the company’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 sale, the insider directly owned 45,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,551,820. This represents a 18.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,520 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.73, for a total transaction of $159,189.60. Following the transaction, the director owned 7,556 shares in the company, valued at $791,339.88. This trade represents a 16.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 72,364 shares of company stock worth $8,085,227 over the last 90 days. 1.04% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on EWBC shares. Stephens raised their price objective on East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $141.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $111.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of East West Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $133.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of East West Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 11th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $128.21.

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.