California State Teachers Retirement System Acquires 20,487,542 Shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) by 12,510.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,651,302 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 20,487,542 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System owned 15.07% of East West Bancorp worth $2,665,877,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. acquired a new stake in East West Bancorp during the second quarter worth approximately $907,000. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its stake in East West Bancorp by 9.6% during the 4th quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 199,658 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $22,440,000 after acquiring an additional 17,486 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in East West Bancorp by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,825,161 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $319,523,000 after acquiring an additional 27,402 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. raised its holdings in East West Bancorp by 8.3% in the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 264,173 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,046,000 after acquiring an additional 20,264 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at $1,516,000. Institutional investors own 89.53% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on EWBC. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on East West Bancorp in a report on Monday, August 10th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $155.00 target price on the stock. Stephens boosted their price target on East West Bancorp from $129.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised shares of East West Bancorp from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $131.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Tuesday. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $152.00 price objective on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and four 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 price target of $144.15.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:EWBC opened at $129.37 on Friday. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $131.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $123.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.72 billion, a PE ratio of 12.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a twelve month low of $92.67 and a twelve month high of $137.47.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) last issued 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. The firm had revenue of $789.98 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $784.47 million. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.07% and a net margin of 30.45%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.24 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at East West Bancorp

In other East West Bancorp news, insider Irene H. Oh sold 800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.19, for a total value of $106,552.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 84,698 shares in the company, valued at $11,280,926.62. This trade represents a 0.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Manuel Alvarez sold 810 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.40, for a total transaction of $105,624.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 10,629 shares in the company, valued at $1,386,021.60. This represents a 7.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 12,610 shares of company stock valued at $1,670,896 in the last quarter. 0.94% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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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