East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC Shares Purchased by Graham Capital Management L.P.

Key Points

• Graham Capital Management L.P. increased its stake in East West Bancorp by 13.8%, adding 7,740 shares, which brought its total holdings to 63,861 shares valued at approximately $5.73 million.
• A significant number of institutional investors, including Invesco Ltd. and Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc., have either increased or initiated stakes in East West Bancorp, reflecting a strong interest in the financial services provider.
• East West Bancorp reported earnings of $2.28 per share for the last quarter, exceeding expectations, alongside a recent quarterly dividend of $0.60 per share, indicating a healthy financial position.

Graham Capital Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) by 13.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 63,861 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 7,740 shares during the period. Graham Capital Management L.P.'s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $5,732,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in East West Bancorp by 155.6% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,714,661 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $692,468,000 after purchasing an additional 4,696,157 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 7.1% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,733,102 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $424,843,000 after acquiring an additional 314,262 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,005,394 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $359,525,000 after acquiring an additional 46,717 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in East West Bancorp by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,701,640 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $152,739,000 after acquiring an additional 32,855 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC bought a new stake in East West Bancorp during the 1st quarter worth approximately $137,390,000. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:EWBC traded up $0.77 on Wednesday, reaching $106.47. 891,386 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 676,937. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $104.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $94.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.89. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $68.27 and a 52 week high of $113.95. The firm has a market cap of $14.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.97.

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

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, August 4th were paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 4th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. East West Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is presently 28.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on EWBC. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of East West Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Sunday, August 3rd. Citigroup lifted their price target 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. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $114.15.

Insider Buying and Selling at East West Bancorp

In related news, insider Irene H. Oh sold 15,051 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.73, for a total transaction of $1,606,393.23. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 113,353 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,098,165.69. This represents a 11.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,000 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total transaction of $105,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 14,974 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,572,270. The trade was a 6.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 62,601 shares of company stock worth $6,543,972 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.04% of the company's stock.

East West Bancorp Company Profile

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.