Bank of America Corp DE Makes New Investment in East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Key Points

• Bank of America acquired 1.72 million shares of East West Bancorp during the second quarter, valued at approximately $221.7 million and representing about 1.25% of the company. Institutional investors collectively own 89.53% of EWBC.
• East West Bancorp reported quarterly EPS of $2.63, slightly above estimates, while revenue rose 12.5% year over year to $789.98 million. The company also maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, yielding approximately 2.5%.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $144.15. However, insiders sold 11,810 shares worth about $1.56 million over the past 90 days.

Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 1,717,034 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $221,652,000. Bank of America Corp DE owned about 1.25% of East West Bancorp as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,744,958,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,825,161 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $319,523,000 after buying an additional 27,402 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 9.6% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,915,445 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $204,470,000 after buying an additional 168,029 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth approximately $199,529,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in East West Bancorp in the second quarter valued at approximately $130,744,000. 89.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Jack Liu sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.02, for a total transaction of $135,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 13,709 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,850,989.18. This represents a 6.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Manuel Alvarez sold 810 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.40, for a total value of $105,624.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 10,629 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,386,021.60. The trade was a 7.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 11,810 shares of company stock worth $1,564,344. Corporate insiders own 0.94% of the company's stock.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ EWBC opened at $126.18 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $131.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $123.36. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 52-week low of $92.67 and a 52-week high of $137.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88. The stock has a market cap of $17.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.13, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.93.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.61 by $0.02. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 30.45% and a return on equity of 16.07%. The firm had revenue of $789.98 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $784.47 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.24 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 3rd. East West Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is 30.77%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on EWBC shares. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on East West Bancorp in a research note on Monday, August 10th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $155.00 price target on the stock. DA Davidson raised their price target on East West Bancorp from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $152.00 price objective on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $144.15.

East West Bancorp Company Profile

East West Bancorp, Inc NASDAQ: EWBC is the holding company for East West Bank, a full-service commercial bank headquartered in Pasadena, California. Founded in 1973, the company provides banking and financial services to individuals, businesses, and institutions through its East West Bank subsidiary.

East West Bank offers deposit accounts, commercial and consumer lending, residential mortgage services, wealth management, treasury management, and international banking services. Its products support commercial real estate, commercial and industrial businesses, residential borrowers, and consumers.

The bank has a particular focus on serving communities and businesses connected to the United States and Greater China.

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