iSAM Funds UK Ltd Takes Position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

iSAM Funds UK Ltd purchased a new position in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 9,076 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $869,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 73.2% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 414 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 119.1% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 563 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 83.4% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 662 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 301 shares during the period. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth approximately $100,000. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of East West Bancorp stock traded down $0.61 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $90.33. 434,552 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 921,423. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 12-month low of $68.27 and a 12-month high of $113.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.84, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $85.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $94.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.05 by $0.04. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 15.71% and a net margin of 25.73%. The firm had revenue of $693.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $673.02 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 8.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. East West Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is presently 28.64%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on EWBC. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $97.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on East West Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday. They set a "buy" rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered East West Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday. Truist Financial began coverage on East West Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. They set a "hold" rating and a $102.00 target price on the stock. Finally, DA Davidson lowered their target price on East West Bancorp from $118.00 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, East West Bancorp has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $107.85.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Lisa L. Kim sold 2,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,849 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,411,248.96. This represents a 12.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Dominic Ng sold 20,181 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.01, for a total value of $1,816,491.81. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 988,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at $88,941,851.33. The trade was a 2.00% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 102,281 shares of company stock valued at $9,473,478 in the last ninety days. 1.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.