East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) Hits New 1-Year High on Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• East West Bancorp shares hit a new 52-week high after Cantor Fitzgerald raised its price target from $137 to $150 and maintained an overweight rating. The stock traded as high as $136.12 on the session.
• Other analysts were also mostly upbeat, with Citigroup and Barclays lifting their targets and issuing buy/overweight ratings. Overall, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with an average target price of $138.31.
• The company recently reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $2.57 versus the $2.46 estimate and revenue of $773.75 million topping forecasts. East West Bancorp also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.80, yielding about 2.4%.

East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Thursday after Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on the stock from $137.00 to $150.00. Cantor Fitzgerald currently has an overweight rating on the stock. East West Bancorp traded as high as $136.12 and last traded at $136.0230, with a volume of 275497 shares. The stock had previously closed at $132.41.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup raised their price objective on East West Bancorp from $145.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Friday, July 10th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of East West Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 4th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $142.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $138.31.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Irene H. Oh sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.19, for a total value of $106,552.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 84,698 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,280,926.62. This represents a 0.94% 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 this hyperlink. Also, CEO Dominic Ng sold 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.49, for a total transaction of $3,704,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 707,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,422,275.70. The trade was a 4.07% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 54,311 shares of company stock worth $6,784,711 in the last 90 days. 0.94% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of East West Bancorp

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors bought a new position in East West Bancorp during the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in East West Bancorp by 115.0% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 344 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its holdings in East West Bancorp by 44.7% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 366 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP raised its holdings in East West Bancorp by 35.4% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 390 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $126.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $118.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88. The company has a market cap of $18.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.94.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $773.75 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $767.80 million. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.00% and a net margin of 29.59%.East West Bancorp's quarterly revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.08 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.56 EPS for the current year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 4th were issued a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 4th. East West Bancorp's payout ratio is 31.97%.

About East West Bancorp

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.

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