First Horizon Advisors Inc. Acquires 212 Shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 39.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 747 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 212 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc.’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $54,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ruffer LLP bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at $33,675,000. Boston Partners lifted its position in East West Bancorp by 36.4% during the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,827,146 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $96,313,000 after purchasing an additional 487,418 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its stake in East West Bancorp by 83.0% during the third quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 863,619 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $45,521,000 after buying an additional 391,702 shares in the last quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC increased its holdings in East West Bancorp by 392.1% in the 3rd quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 453,825 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $23,921,000 after buying an additional 361,597 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 256.6% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 487,383 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,690,000 after acquiring an additional 350,706 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:EWBC opened at $77.44 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $10.77 billion, a PE ratio of 9.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.38. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $42.60 and a 52 week high of $79.54. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $75.45 and its 200-day moving average is $70.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.93.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.00 by $0.08. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 17.43% and a net margin of 26.78%. The firm had revenue of $644.13 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $636.77 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.32 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 7.99 earnings per share for the current year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.84%. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is 27.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on EWBC shares. Compass Point lifted their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Morgan Stanley upped 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on East West Bancorp from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $84.08.

Insider Transactions at East West Bancorp

In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.58, for a total transaction of $147,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 16,739 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,231,655.62. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,625 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.26, for a total transaction of $125,547.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 10,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $797,400.46. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.58, for a total transaction of $147,160.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,739 shares in the company, valued at $1,231,655.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 13,625 shares of company stock worth $1,048,508. Company insiders own 1.04% 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.