East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $128.2143.

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $111.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. Wall Street Zen upgraded East West Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 11th. Barclays boosted their price objective on East West Bancorp from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $126.00 target price on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Stephens boosted their price target on East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

EWBC stock opened at $113.40 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. East West Bancorp has a 52-week low of $68.27 and a 52-week high of $119.73. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $112.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $106.91. The company has a market capitalization of $15.60 billion, a PE ratio of 11.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.88.

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

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity at East West Bancorp

In other East West Bancorp news, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider owned 45,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,551,820. This trade represents a 18.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Irene H. Oh sold 7,453 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.90, for a total value of $848,896.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 85,714 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,762,824.60. The trade was a 8.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 73,344 shares of company stock valued at $8,184,226 in the last ninety days. 1.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of East West Bancorp

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC bought a new stake in East West Bancorp in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Park Place Capital Corp acquired a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Chung Wu Investment Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its holdings in East West Bancorp by 127.6% in the 2nd quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 346 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

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.