International Assets Investment Management LLC Makes New $2.37 Million Investment in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 32,881 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,366,000.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of EWBC. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 211 shares during the period. Denali Advisors LLC increased its stake in East West Bancorp by 66.7% in the 4th quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new position in East West Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 1,050.0% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 667 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 609 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $53,000. 89.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on East West Bancorp from $76.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Barclays assumed coverage on East West Bancorp in a research report on Friday, March 8th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $106.00 price objective on the stock. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $86.00 price objective on shares of East West Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on East West Bancorp from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on East West Bancorp from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $83.15.

East West Bancorp Trading Up 1.5 %

East West Bancorp stock opened at $72.88 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $74.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $67.70. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 12 month low of $41.12 and a 12 month high of $79.54. The company has a market capitalization of $10.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.39.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.13. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 18.47% and a net margin of 29.11%. The business had revenue of $654.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $641.91 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.37 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 7.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 2nd were paid a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 1st. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.02%. This is a boost from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is currently 26.89%.

Insider Transactions at East West Bancorp

In other news, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,625 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,321 shares in the company, valued at $797,400.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,625 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,321 shares in the company, valued at $797,400.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.58, for a total value of $147,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 16,739 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,231,655.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

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.