Novem Group Buys New Holdings in East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Key Points

• Novem Group bought a new stake in East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) of 10,990 shares valued at approximately $1.235 million in Q4, and institutional investors/hedge funds now own about 89.53% of the stock.
• Company insiders have been net sellers — including Director Jack C. Liu and EVP Gary Teo — with insiders selling 60,221 shares worth roughly $7.14 million over the last three months, leaving insiders with just 1.04% ownership.
• East West raised its quarterly dividend to $0.80 (annualized $3.20, yield 2.7%), reported Q4 EPS of $2.52 (beating estimates), and holds an average analyst rating of Moderate Buy with a $127.36 price target.

Novem Group bought a new stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 10,990 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,235,000.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Quarry LP lifted its stake in East West Bancorp by 35.4% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 390 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its stake in East West Bancorp by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 5,674 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $604,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in East West Bancorp by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,602 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $277,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its stake in East West Bancorp by 44.7% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 366 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital lifted its stake in East West Bancorp by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 4,166 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $485,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at East West Bancorp

In other news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,421 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.00, for a total transaction of $169,099.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 13,553 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,612,807. This trade represents a 9.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Gary Teo sold 7,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.59, for a total transaction of $858,130.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 5,252 shares in the company, valued at $643,842.68. This represents a 57.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 60,221 shares of company stock valued at $7,139,287. 1.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on EWBC. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $116.00 to $111.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of East West Bancorp from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 24th. UBS Group upgraded shares of East West Bancorp from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $125.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $141.00 to $128.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Stephens raised their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, East West Bancorp currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $127.36.

East West Bancorp Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of EWBC stock opened at $119.09 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $111.74 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $110.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company has a market capitalization of $16.31 billion, a PE ratio of 12.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.90. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.22 and a 12-month high of $123.82.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $753.79 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $745.04 million. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 28.36% and a return on equity of 15.72%. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.10 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.25 earnings per share for the current year.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 2nd were given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. This is a boost from East West Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 2nd. East West Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.61%.

East West Bancorp Profile

East West Bancorp, Inc is a bank holding company and the parent of East West Bank, one of the largest independent banks headquartered in Southern California. As a full-service commercial bank, it provides a broad range of financial products and services to business and individual customers, including commercial and residential real estate lending, working capital lines of credit, trade finance, and deposit and treasury management services. The company caters to both large and middle-market businesses, leveraging its expertise to serve clients engaged in cross-border trade and investment between the United States and Greater China.

Founded in Los Angeles in the early 1970s, East West Bank has grown steadily through organic expansion and strategic branch openings.

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