Trillium Asset Management LLC Invests $19.44 Million in East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Trillium Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 150,582 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $19,439,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in East West Bancorp in the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors acquired a new position in East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $37,000. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew 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 buying an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at East West Bancorp

In other East West Bancorp news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.02, for a total transaction of $135,020.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 13,709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,850,989.18. This trade represents a 6.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Irene H. Oh sold 800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.19, for a total value of $106,552.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 84,698 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,280,926.62. The trade was a 0.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 33,511 shares of company stock worth $4,312,741 over the last 90 days. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on EWBC shares. Wall Street Zen raised East West Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $152.00 target price on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on East West Bancorp from $128.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a research report on Friday, July 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $141.92.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ EWBC opened at $129.89 on Friday. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a one year low of $92.67 and a one year high of $137.47. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $131.43 and a 200 day moving average of $121.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88. The company has a market capitalization of $17.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.49, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.94.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.02. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.07% and a net margin of 30.45%.The company had revenue of $789.98 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $784.47 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.24 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.61 EPS for the current year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.