Geode Capital Management LLC Has $244.18 Million Stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

Geode Capital Management LLC reduced its holdings in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 2.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,538,582 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 69,550 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 1.83% of East West Bancorp worth $244,181,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 43,291 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,146,000 after acquiring an additional 739 shares during the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 26.1% during the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 11,943 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,144,000 after purchasing an additional 2,474 shares during the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group raised its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,831,862 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $272,652,000 after purchasing an additional 183,675 shares in the last quarter. DnB Asset Management AS boosted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 25.3% in the 4th quarter. DnB Asset Management AS now owns 139,682 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,376,000 after buying an additional 28,201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 14.4% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 20,545 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,967,000 after buying an additional 2,579 shares in the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Dominic Ng sold 19,819 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total transaction of $1,783,710.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 968,314 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $87,148,260. This represents a 2.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total value of $133,275.75. Following the transaction, the director now owns 14,557 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,521,643.21. This trade represents a 8.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 62,181 shares of company stock worth $5,625,732 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

East West Bancorp Trading Down 5.0 %

Shares of East West Bancorp stock opened at $74.04 on Friday. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 52-week low of $68.78 and a 52-week high of $113.95. The stock has a market cap of $10.25 billion, a PE ratio of 8.89, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.28. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $93.50 and a 200-day moving average of $95.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.91.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.24%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This is a positive change from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on EWBC shares. DA Davidson dropped their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $112.00 target price on the stock. Compass Point lifted their price target on East West Bancorp from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. StockNews.com lowered East West Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Finally, Stephens cut East West Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $111.31.

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.