California Public Employees Retirement System Decreases Stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

California Public Employees Retirement System reduced its stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 266,648 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 11,365 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $19,185,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Denali Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 66.7% in the 4th quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in East West Bancorp by 65.1% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 535 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 211 shares during the period. Planned Solutions Inc. acquired a new position in East West Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 1,050.0% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 667 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 22.8% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,825 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 339 shares during the period. 89.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at East West Bancorp

In other news, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,625 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.26, for a total transaction of $125,547.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 10,321 shares in the company, valued at approximately $797,400.46. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.58, for a total transaction of $147,160.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 16,739 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,231,655.62. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,625 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.26, for a total value of $125,547.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 10,321 shares in the company, valued at approximately $797,400.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

East West Bancorp Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of EWBC stock opened at $75.98 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $74.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.57, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.39. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $41.12 and a fifty-two week high of $79.54.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.00 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $644.13 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $636.77 million. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 17.43% and a net margin of 26.78%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.32 EPS. Research analysts expect that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 7.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.90%. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EWBC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Barclays began coverage on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Friday, March 8th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $106.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $85.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $90.00 price target on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $90.00 to $86.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $84.08.

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.