AlphaQuest LLC Purchases 16,581 Shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Key Points

• AlphaQuest LLC increased its holdings in East West Bancorp, owning 34,722 shares after purchasing an additional 16,581 shares, marking a 91.4% increase in the first quarter.
• East West Bancorp's quarterly earnings exceeded expectations with $2.28 EPS, beating the consensus estimate of $2.23, and the company's revenue grew by 10.3% year-over-year.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.60, representing a 2.4% yield, with a payout ratio of 28.04%.

AlphaQuest LLC increased its position in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) by 91.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,722 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 16,581 shares during the period. East West Bancorp accounts for approximately 0.3% of AlphaQuest LLC's holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest position. AlphaQuest LLC's holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $3,117,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of EWBC. Mariner LLC raised its stake in East West Bancorp by 27.1% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 11,918 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,142,000 after purchasing an additional 2,539 shares during the last quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC raised its stake in East West Bancorp by 33.4% during the 4th quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 8,129 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $778,000 after purchasing an additional 2,036 shares during the last quarter. Natixis acquired a new position in East West Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at $136,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in East West Bancorp by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 14,544 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,393,000 after purchasing an additional 598 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its stake in East West Bancorp by 14.5% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 21,257 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,043,000 after purchasing an additional 2,692 shares during the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

East West Bancorp Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ EWBC opened at $100.71 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.88 billion, a PE ratio of 11.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 1 year low of $68.27 and a 1 year high of $113.95. The firm's 50-day moving average is $102.15 and its 200-day moving average is $93.66.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.23 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $705.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $702.04 million. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 26.06% and a return on equity of 15.09%. East West Bancorp's revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.07 EPS. Equities analysts expect that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 8.85 EPS for the current year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 4th were issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 4th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. East West Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.04%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Dominic Ng sold 40,000 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.38, for a total value of $4,135,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 888,314 shares in the company, valued at $91,833,901.32. This trade represents a 4.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on EWBC. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $102.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $110.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $114.15.

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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