Capital International Investors Sells 141,651 Shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Key Points

• Capital International Investors reduced its East West Bancorp stake by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 141,651 shares but still holding 8.65 million shares valued at about $972.1 million.
• East West Bancorp posted better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $2.57 versus the $2.46 estimate and revenue up 11.8% year over year to $773.75 million.
• The company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, equivalent to an annualized yield of 2.5%, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with a consensus price target of $133.69.

Capital International Investors trimmed its holdings in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) by 1.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,647,121 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 141,651 shares during the period. Capital International Investors owned 6.28% of East West Bancorp worth $972,087,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 84,090.3% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 5,311,566 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $596,967,000 after purchasing an additional 5,305,257 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,313,856 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $459,210,000 after purchasing an additional 19,539 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 19.6% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,874,737 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $412,464,000 after purchasing an additional 633,649 shares during the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group increased its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 3,395,376 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $361,879,000 after purchasing an additional 334,429 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 27,402 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.53% of the company's stock.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of EWBC opened at $125.94 on Monday. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $90.79 and a 52 week high of $127.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $119.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $114.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.46 by $0.11. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.00% and a net margin of 29.59%.The firm had revenue of $773.75 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $767.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.08 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.6 earnings per share 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 paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 4th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. East West Bancorp's payout ratio is currently 31.97%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on EWBC shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $141.00 to $128.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $137.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $111.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $133.00 target price on shares of East West Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $150.00 to $142.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, East West Bancorp has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $133.69.

Insider Buying and Selling at East West Bancorp

In other news, CEO Dominic Ng sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.49, for a total value of $3,704,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 707,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,422,275.70. This represents a 4.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Archana Deskus sold 1,800 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.55, for a total transaction of $225,990.00. Following the sale, the director owned 13,231 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,661,152.05. This trade represents a 11.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 41,800 shares of company stock valued at $5,165,690 in the last 90 days. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

East West Bancorp Company Profile

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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