Northern Trust Corp Purchases 228,825 Shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) by 22.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,226,124 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 228,825 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned 0.88% of East West Bancorp worth $117,414,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth approximately $166,590,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its position in East West Bancorp by 1,667.7% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 670,156 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $64,174,000 after purchasing an additional 632,245 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners boosted its position in East West Bancorp by 23.1% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,383,284 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $228,269,000 after buying an additional 447,057 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in East West Bancorp by 17.0% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,018,504 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $289,052,000 after buying an additional 437,676 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at $32,138,000. Institutional investors own 89.53% of the company's stock.

East West Bancorp Stock Down 0.3 %

EWBC stock traded down $0.27 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $89.53. 189,795 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,154,238. The company has a market cap of $12.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.75, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.90. The firm's 50-day moving average is $84.07 and its 200-day moving average is $94.68. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 12 month low of $68.27 and a 12 month high of $113.95. 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 announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.05 by $0.04. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 15.71% and a net margin of 25.73%. The business had revenue of $693.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $673.02 million. On average, equities research analysts expect that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 8.85 earnings per share for the current year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be paid a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.68%. East West Bancorp's payout ratio is currently 28.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley lowered East West Bancorp from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $118.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $100.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $97.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Barclays lifted their price objective 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. Finally, StockNews.com cut East West Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, March 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, East West Bancorp presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $105.46.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Dominic Ng sold 20,181 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.01, for a total value of $1,816,491.81. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 988,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $88,941,851.33. The trade was a 2.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders have sold 60,181 shares of company stock valued at $5,416,694 in the last three months. 1.04% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.