Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Lowers Holdings in East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lowered its holdings in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 1.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,630,909 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 19,896 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 1.18% of East West Bancorp worth $173,610,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 38.5% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 10,683,377 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,078,807,000 after acquiring an additional 2,968,716 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $174,431,000. Boston Partners grew its stake in East West Bancorp by 39.6% during the 2nd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,241,088 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $327,271,000 after purchasing an additional 920,159 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in East West Bancorp by 448.5% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 840,371 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $84,861,000 after purchasing an additional 687,145 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in East West Bancorp by 61.9% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,418,174 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $143,207,000 after purchasing an additional 542,149 shares in the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EWBC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Barclays increased their target price on East West Bancorp from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. Stephens upped their price objective on East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. UBS Group set a $125.00 price objective on East West Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Zacks Research lowered East West Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, East West Bancorp presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $129.21.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of EWBC opened at $107.00 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.89. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 1-year low of $68.27 and a 1-year high of $123.82. The stock has a market cap of $14.73 billion, a PE ratio of 11.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.90. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $115.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $109.55.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 $753.79 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $745.04 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.10 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 8.85 EPS for the current year.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 2nd were given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. This is a positive change from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 2nd. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.61%.

Insider Activity at East West Bancorp

In other news, EVP Gary Teo sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.59, for a total transaction of $858,130.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 5,252 shares in the company, valued at approximately $643,842.68. This trade represents a 57.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Dominic Ng sold 50,000 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.82, for a total transaction of $5,891,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 808,331 shares in the company, valued at $95,237,558.42. The trade was a 5.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 119,065 shares of company stock valued at $13,857,314 over the last 90 days. 1.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About East West Bancorp

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.