Hsbc Holdings PLC Reduces Stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Key Points

• Hsbc Holdings PLC cut its East West Bancorp stake by 65.3% in the second quarter, selling 8,726 shares and retaining 4,642 shares worth approximately $599,000. Institutional investors collectively own 89.53% of EWBC.
• East West Bancorp reported quarterly EPS of $2.63, topping 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, yielding about 2.5% annually.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $144.15; Morgan Stanley recently raised its target to $160 and upgraded the stock to “overweight.”

Hsbc Holdings PLC reduced its holdings in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) by 65.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,642 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 8,726 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC's holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $599,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in East West Bancorp in the second quarter worth $205,000. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,425,000. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at $576,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in East West Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth $5,439,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in East West Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth $206,000. 89.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at East West Bancorp

In related news, Vice Chairman Douglas Krause sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.37, for a total value of $1,323,700.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 36,974 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,894,248.38. This represents a 21.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jack Liu sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.02, for a total value of $135,020.00. Following the sale, the director owned 13,709 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,850,989.18. This represents a 6.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 11,810 shares of company stock valued at $1,564,344 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.94% of the company's stock.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

EWBC opened at $129.81 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $17.79 billion, a PE ratio of 12.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.93. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $131.29 and a 200-day moving average price of $123.20. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 1 year low of $92.67 and a 1 year high of $137.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.61 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $789.98 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $784.47 million. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 30.45% and a return on equity of 16.07%. East West Bancorp's revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.24 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on EWBC. Morgan Stanley raised shares of East West Bancorp from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $131.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of East West Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. DA Davidson upped their target price on East West Bancorp from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on East West Bancorp from $128.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $144.15.

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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