Whittier Trust Co. Sells 26,622 Shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Whittier Trust Co. trimmed its position in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 9.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 245,964 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 26,622 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co. owned 0.18% of East West Bancorp worth $26,198,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Park Place Capital Corp bought a new position in East West Bancorp during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Chung Wu Investment Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the second quarter worth about $30,000. American National Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 127.6% in the 2nd quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 346 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the period. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust increased its stake in East West Bancorp by 82.6% during the 3rd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 336 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ:EWBC opened at $111.35 on Friday. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 52-week low of $68.27 and a 52-week high of $119.73. The company has a market cap of $15.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $111.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $106.83.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.48 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $754.92 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $745.04 million. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.04% and a net margin of 28.36%.During the same period last year, the company earned $2.10 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 8.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 2nd will be issued 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.21%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on EWBC. Zacks Research cut shares of East West Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 24th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Barclays increased their target price on East West Bancorp from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. Wall Street Zen upgraded East West Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, East West Bancorp has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $127.62.

Insider Activity

In other East West Bancorp news, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,520 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.73, for a total value of $159,189.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 7,556 shares in the company, valued at $791,339.88. This trade represents a 16.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Dominic Ng sold 30,000 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.63, for a total transaction of $3,408,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 858,314 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $97,530,219.82. This trade represents a 3.38% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 73,344 shares of company stock valued at $8,184,226. 1.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

East West Bancorp News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting East West Bancorp this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat consensus — EWBC reported $2.52 EPS (vs. $2.48 est.) and revenues of $754.9M, showing year‑over‑year growth and a beat on both headline metrics. East West Bancorp (EWBC) Q4 Earnings and Revenues Top Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Record full‑year results and bigger payout — East West reported record 2025 net income of $1.3B (diluted EPS $9.52) and increased the quarterly dividend 33% to $0.80/share, which supports income investors and signals confidence from management. Business Wire: East West Bancorp Reports Record Net Income for 2025
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst target uplift — Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised its price target to $135 with an Outperform rating (roughly ~21% above the current level), indicating continued analyst bullishness on medium‑term upside. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks lifted forward EPS forecasts — Zacks updated multiple quarterly and FY2026/FY2027 EPS estimates higher, reflecting expectations for continued earnings growth (Zacks still carries a Hold rating). (See Zacks research notes for details.)
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call and full disclosure available — Management commentary and slides from the Q4 call are available for investors to review guidance, asset quality and expense drivers. Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst ratings mix — while some price targets were raised, major research houses (e.g., Zacks) maintain a Hold rating; investors should read analyst notes for valuation assumptions and multiples.
• Negative Sentiment: Higher operating costs trimmed investor enthusiasm — coverage notes that non‑interest expenses rose year‑over‑year, which weighed on the stock despite the beat and contributed to the intraday selloff. EWBC Stock Dips Despite Q4 Earnings Beat, Revenues & Costs Rise Y/Y

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.