Bessemer Group Inc. Trims Position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

Bessemer Group Inc. cut its stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) by 54.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,774 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 20,431 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc.'s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $1,505,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 89.7% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 518 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares during the period. Grove Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 448.9% during the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 516 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 422 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 119.1% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 563 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 306 shares during the period. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in East West Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at $100,000. 89.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ:EWBC traded up $1.42 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $108.87. The company's stock had a trading volume of 604,281 shares, compared to its average volume of 930,288. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 52-week low of $68.27 and a 52-week high of $113.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.89. The business's 50-day moving average is $93.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $92.37. The company has a market capitalization of $15.00 billion, a PE ratio of 12.99, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.93.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.05 by $0.04. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 25.73% and a return on equity of 15.23%. The firm had revenue of $693.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $673.02 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 8.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.20%. East West Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is presently 28.64%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on EWBC. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of 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. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on East West Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a "buy" rating and a $115.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup upped their price objective on East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Truist Financial started coverage on East West Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. They set a "hold" rating and a $102.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $100.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $108.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other East West Bancorp news, EVP Lisa L. Kim sold 2,100 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.04, for a total transaction of $199,584.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 14,849 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,411,248.96. The trade was a 12.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Dominic Ng sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.43, for a total transaction of $3,857,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 928,314 shares in the company, valued at $89,517,319.02. This represents a 4.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.04% of the stock is currently owned by 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.