East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) Trading Down 5.7%

Posted by AM Reporter Staff on Mar 19th, 2023

East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC – Get Rating) dropped 5.7% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $54.77 and last traded at $55.05. Approximately 355,494 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 73% from the average daily volume of 1,318,039 shares. The stock had previously closed at $58.39.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EWBC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on East West Bancorp from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 27th. UBS Group initiated coverage on East West Bancorp in a report on Wednesday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $63.00 price target for the company. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $77.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 27th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $79.29.

East West Bancorp Stock Down 6.5 %

The business’s 50 day moving average is $72.02 and its 200 day moving average is $70.08. The company has a market cap of $7.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 26th. The financial services provider reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.22 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $826.14 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $654.24 million. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 19.66% and a net margin of 43.06%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.52 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 9.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 6th were given a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 3rd. This is an increase from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.52%. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.24%.

Insider Transactions at East West Bancorp

In other news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.00, for a total transaction of $154,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,136 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,319,472. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.00, for a total transaction of $154,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,136 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,319,472. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Irene H. Oh acquired 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 13th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $49.51 per share, for a total transaction of $495,100.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer now directly owns 124,925 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,185,036.75. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On East West Bancorp

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in EWBC. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in East West Bancorp by 1,681.8% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 392 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in East West Bancorp by 1,515.6% in the third quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 517 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank boosted its holdings in East West Bancorp by 80.1% in the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 580 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in East West Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in East West Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at $53,000. 88.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About East West Bancorp

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East West Bancorp, Inc is a bank holding company, which engages in the provision of financial services. It operates through the following business segments: Consumer and Business Banking, Commercial Banking, and Other. The Consumer and Business Banking segment provides financial service products and services to consumer and commercial customers through the company’s branch network in the U.S.