50,243 Shares in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) Acquired by B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 50,243 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,157,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in East West Bancorp by 9.9% in the third quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,355 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $443,000 after buying an additional 483 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth about $3,715,000. Pathstone Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in East West Bancorp by 4.1% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 20,911 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,730,000 after purchasing an additional 828 shares in the last quarter. Lindenwold Advisors INC increased its stake in East West Bancorp by 1.8% in the third quarter. Lindenwold Advisors INC now owns 7,270 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $602,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LMR Partners LLP acquired a new stake in East West Bancorp during the third quarter worth approximately $339,000. 89.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

East West Bancorp Stock Up 1.2 %

EWBC opened at $105.50 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.92. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 12 month low of $60.34 and a 12 month high of $107.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.32, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.27. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $90.67 and a 200-day simple moving average of $81.93.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.06 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $641.80 million. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.07% and a net margin of 24.96%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.02 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th were issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.78%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.50, for a total value of $167,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,382,509.50. This trade represents a 10.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,500 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.65, for a total value of $147,975.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,639 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,049,537.35. This represents a 12.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 25,969 shares of company stock worth $2,625,276. 1.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EWBC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on East West Bancorp from $87.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Compass Point boosted their price objective on East West Bancorp from $93.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Stephens raised their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $91.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of East West Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $102.25.

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.