East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) PT Raised to $95.00 at Stephens

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) had its price objective increased by Stephens from $86.00 to $95.00 in a research report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

EWBC has been the subject of several other research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on East West Bancorp from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $106.00 to $105.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $94.00 to $85.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. DA Davidson raised their target price on East West Bancorp from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their target price on East West Bancorp from $72.50 to $92.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $88.60.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ EWBC opened at $87.97 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $74.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $74.33. The stock has a market cap of $12.24 billion, a PE ratio of 11.08, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.92. East West Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $49.59 and a fifty-two week high of $88.51.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.10. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 25.40%. The business had revenue of $638.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $631.61 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.20 EPS. East West Bancorp’s quarterly revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that East West Bancorp will post 8.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 2nd will be paid a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 2nd. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.71%.

Insider Transactions at East West Bancorp

In related news, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.76, for a total transaction of $590,080.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 57,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,234,045.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.76, for a total value of $590,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 57,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,234,045.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Irene H. Oh sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.58, for a total value of $775,800.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 127,193 shares in the company, valued at $9,867,632.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On East West Bancorp

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in East West Bancorp by 19.1% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 122,331 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,448,000 after purchasing an additional 19,627 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates grew its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 23.7% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 432,729 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,135,000 after buying an additional 82,872 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 13.9% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 5,741 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $413,000 after acquiring an additional 699 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 29.9% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 20,909 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,504,000 after acquiring an additional 4,818 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Planned Solutions Inc. bought a new position in East West Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

East West Bancorp Company Profile

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.