Edgestream Partners L.P. Increases Stock Position in East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its holdings in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 7.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 88,080 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,828 shares during the quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P.’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $9,403,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors purchased a new position in shares of East West Bancorp in the third quarter worth $31,000. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 115.0% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 344 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 44.7% during the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 366 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP boosted its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 35.4% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 390 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EWBC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on East West Bancorp from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $128.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $128.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, East West Bancorp presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.23.

Insider Transactions at East West Bancorp

In other news, CEO Dominic Ng sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.49, for a total transaction of $3,704,700.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 707,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,422,275.70. This represents a 4.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Irene H. Oh sold 800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.19, for a total transaction of $106,552.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 84,698 shares in the company, valued at $11,280,926.62. This represents a 0.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 52,511 shares of company stock worth $6,558,721 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.94% of the company’s stock.

East West Bancorp Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of EWBC stock opened at $130.28 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market cap of $17.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.53, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.94. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $92.67 and a 52 week high of $136.24. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $128.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $119.83.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.61 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $791.14 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $784.47 million. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 30.45% and a return on equity of 16.07%. East West Bancorp’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.24 earnings per share. Analysts predict that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 3rd will be issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is 30.77%.

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.