EFG International AG Takes Position in East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

EFG International AG acquired a new stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 47,392 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $6,117,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EWBC. Solstein Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Ancora Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Fiduciary Financial Advisors acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,000. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other East West Bancorp news, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.37, for a total transaction of $1,323,700.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 36,974 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,894,248.38. This represents a 21.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Irene H. Oh sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.19, for a total transaction of $106,552.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 84,698 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,280,926.62. This represents a 0.94% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 23,511 shares of company stock valued at $3,077,741. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

East West Bancorp Trading Up 0.4%

East West Bancorp stock opened at $129.43 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $17.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.94. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $131.30 and a 200-day moving average of $122.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a one year low of $92.67 and a one year high of $137.47.

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

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 17th. Investors of record on Monday, August 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 3rd. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently 30.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on EWBC shares. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $128.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Stephens increased their target price on East West Bancorp from $129.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $141.92.

East West Bancorp 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.