East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) has been given an average rating of "Moderate Buy" by the thirteen analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $107.85.

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on EWBC. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $97.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Barclays raised their price target on East West Bancorp from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Truist Financial began coverage on East West Bancorp in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. They set a "hold" rating and a $102.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $100.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, DA Davidson decreased their price target on East West Bancorp from $118.00 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ:EWBC opened at $90.94 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.92, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.90. East West Bancorp has a 1 year low of $68.27 and a 1 year high of $113.95. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $85.34 and a 200-day simple moving average of $94.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.05 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $693.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $673.02 million. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 15.71% and a net margin of 25.73%. Equities analysts forecast that East West Bancorp will post 8.85 EPS for the current year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.64%. East West Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is presently 28.64%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Dominic Ng sold 20,181 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.01, for a total transaction of $1,816,491.81. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 988,133 shares in the company, valued at $88,941,851.33. The trade was a 2.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Lisa L. Kim sold 2,100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.04, for a total value of $199,584.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,849 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,411,248.96. This trade represents a 12.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 102,281 shares of company stock worth $9,473,478. 1.04% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in East West Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management grew its stake in East West Bancorp by 1,971.4% during the 1st quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 290 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new position in East West Bancorp during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in East West Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in East West Bancorp by 73.2% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 414 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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