East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) Stake Lessened by LSV Asset Management

Key Points

• LSV Asset Management has reduced its stake in East West Bancorp by 4.0%, now holding 342,900 shares worth approximately $30.78 million.
• The company reported earnings per share of $2.28 in its latest quarter, exceeding estimates, with a revenue increase of 10.3% compared to the previous year.
• East West Bancorp has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.60 per share, representing a 2.4% yield, with a payout ratio of 28.04%.

LSV Asset Management lessened its stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) by 4.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 342,900 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 14,400 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management owned about 0.25% of East West Bancorp worth $30,779,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in EWBC. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its stake in East West Bancorp by 1,971.4% during the first quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 290 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in East West Bancorp by 89.7% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 518 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust increased its stake in East West Bancorp by 448.9% during the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 516 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 422 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new stake in East West Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at $100,000. Institutional investors own 89.53% of the company's stock.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

EWBC stock opened at $98.80 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $13.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.54, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $99.90 and a 200 day simple moving average of $93.73. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $68.27 and a fifty-two week high of $113.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

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

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, August 4th will be issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 4th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. East West Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is presently 28.04%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Dominic Ng sold 40,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.38, for a total value of $4,135,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 888,314 shares of the company's stock, valued at $91,833,901.32. This represents a 4.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lisa L. Kim sold 2,100 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.04, for a total transaction of $199,584.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 14,849 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,411,248.96. The trade was a 12.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 82,100 shares of company stock valued at $8,191,984 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.04% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on EWBC. Citigroup boosted their target price 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. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of East West Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Sunday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their target price 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, East West Bancorp has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $114.15.

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.

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