East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC Stock Holdings Increased by Squarepoint Ops LLC

Key Points

• Squarepoint Ops increased its East West Bancorp stake by 61.2% in the second quarter, bringing its holdings to 83,620 shares valued at approximately $10.8 million. Institutional investors collectively own 89.53% of EWBC.
• East West Bancorp reported quarterly EPS of $2.63, exceeding estimates by $0.02, while revenue rose 12.5% year over year to $789.98 million. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, representing a 2.5% annualized yield.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $144.15. However, insiders sold 12,300 shares worth approximately $1.63 million over the past three months.

Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its stake in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) by 61.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 83,620 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 31,761 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC owned 0.06% of East West Bancorp worth $10,795,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in East West Bancorp by 12,510.7% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 20,651,302 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,665,877,000 after purchasing an additional 20,487,542 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,744,958,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings 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 valued at $596,967,000 after buying an additional 5,305,257 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at about $199,529,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $221,652,000. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at East West Bancorp

In other news, Director Jack Liu sold 1,000 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.02, for a total transaction of $135,020.00. Following the sale, the director owned 13,709 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,850,989.18. This trade represents a 6.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas Krause sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.37, for a total value of $1,323,700.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 36,974 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,894,248.38. This represents a 21.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 12,300 shares of company stock worth $1,631,522 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.94% of the company's stock.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

EWBC opened at $128.28 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.93. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $131.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $122.94. 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 12-month low of $92.67 and a 12-month high of $137.47.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.02. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.07% and a net margin of 30.45%.The company had revenue of $789.98 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $784.47 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.24 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.61 earnings per share for the current year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EWBC has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on East West Bancorp in a report on Monday, August 10th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $155.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of East West Bancorp from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $131.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Stephens raised their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $129.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of East West Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. One 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, East West Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $144.15.

East West Bancorp 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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