East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) Shares Sold by South Dakota Investment Council

South Dakota Investment Council trimmed its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 8.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 149,517 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 13,438 shares during the quarter. South Dakota Investment Council owned 0.11% of East West Bancorp worth $14,318,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of EWBC. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 73.2% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 414 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 83.4% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 662 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 301 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the third quarter worth about $79,000. 89.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,275 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total transaction of $133,275.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 14,557 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,521,643.21. This represents a 8.05 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays lowered their price objective on East West Bancorp from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on East West Bancorp from $96.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Compass Point boosted their price objective on East West Bancorp from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $97.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Stephens lowered East West Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $110.38.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EWBC opened at $93.89 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $98.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $93.77. The company has a market cap of $13.02 billion, a PE ratio of 11.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.30. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 12-month low of $68.78 and a 12-month high of $113.95.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.56%. This is an increase from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 28.81%.

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.