International Assets Investment Management LLC Invests $2.37 Million in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 32,881 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,366,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of EWBC. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 17.4% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 21,819 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,725,000 after buying an additional 3,228 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the first quarter worth approximately $836,000. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can raised its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 8.1% in the first quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 77,662 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,308,000 after buying an additional 5,821 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its holdings in East West Bancorp by 221.0% during the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 2,600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $205,000 after purchasing an additional 1,790 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in East West Bancorp by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,803,992 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,090,792,000 after purchasing an additional 86,848 shares during the period. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at East West Bancorp

In other news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.58, for a total value of $147,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 16,739 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,231,655.62. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other East West Bancorp news, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,625 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.26, for a total transaction of $125,547.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 10,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $797,400.46. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.58, for a total value of $147,160.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 16,739 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,231,655.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

East West Bancorp Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ EWBC opened at $72.88 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.14 billion, a PE ratio of 8.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.39. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $74.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $67.70. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 12-month low of $41.12 and a 12-month high of $79.54.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $654.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $641.91 million. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 18.47% and a net margin of 29.11%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.37 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 7.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 2nd were given a $0.55 dividend. This is a boost from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 1st. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.02%. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.89%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on EWBC. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on East West Bancorp from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on East West Bancorp from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 1st. Citigroup raised their price objective on East West Bancorp from $85.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $86.00 price objective on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on East West Bancorp from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $83.15.

About East West Bancorp

East West Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for East West Bank that provides a range of personal and commercial banking services to businesses and individuals in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Consumer and Business Banking, Commercial Banking, and Other.