UBS Group AG Purchases 835,814 Shares of Hope Bancorp, Inc. $HOPE

Key Points

• UBS Group AG boosted its stake in Hope Bancorp by 73.5% in the fourth quarter, buying an additional 835,814 shares and bringing its total holdings to 1.97 million shares worth about $21.6 million.
• Hope Bancorp’s latest quarterly results beat EPS estimates, reporting $0.23 per share versus the $0.22 consensus, though revenue of $126.69 million came in below expectations. Revenue still rose 21% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.14 per share, implying a 4.6% annualized yield, while analysts currently hold a consensus rating of “Hold” with an average price target of $14.50.

UBS Group AG increased its position in Hope Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOPE - Free Report) by 73.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,972,716 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 835,814 shares during the quarter. UBS Group AG owned approximately 1.54% of Hope Bancorp worth $21,621,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in Hope Bancorp by 366.8% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,340,635 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $14,439,000 after purchasing an additional 1,053,434 shares during the period. Rhino Investment Partners Inc raised its holdings in shares of Hope Bancorp by 29.8% in the 3rd quarter. Rhino Investment Partners Inc now owns 1,896,501 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $20,425,000 after buying an additional 435,165 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Hope Bancorp by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 11,335,999 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $122,089,000 after buying an additional 303,019 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its position in shares of Hope Bancorp by 24.1% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 1,175,440 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $12,659,000 after buying an additional 227,931 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its stake in Hope Bancorp by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,494,266 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $69,683,000 after buying an additional 209,442 shares in the last quarter. 84.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Hope Bancorp

In other news, Director Daisy Y. Ha sold 12,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.53, for a total value of $150,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 373,115 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,675,130.95. The trade was a 3.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.27% of the company's stock.

Hope Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:HOPE opened at $12.14 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $11.71 and a 200-day moving average of $11.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.96. Hope Bancorp, Inc. has a twelve month low of $9.44 and a twelve month high of $13.02. The firm has a market cap of $1.55 billion, a PE ratio of 23.35 and a beta of 0.84.

Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $126.69 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $145.30 million. Hope Bancorp had a net margin of 6.56% and a return on equity of 5.32%. Hope Bancorp's quarterly revenue was up 21.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.17 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Hope Bancorp, Inc. will post 1.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hope Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th will be given a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 8th. Hope Bancorp's payout ratio is presently 107.69%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Brean Capital raised Hope Bancorp from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Hope Bancorp from $14.50 to $15.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Zacks Research raised shares of Hope Bancorp from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Hope Bancorp from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Hope Bancorp from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hope Bancorp has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $14.50.

Hope Bancorp Profile

Hope Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Hope Bank, a California-chartered financial institution serving small and middle-market businesses, professionals and affluent individuals. The company's principal activities include accepting a variety of deposit products—such as checking accounts, savings and money market accounts, and time deposits—and extending commercial credit facilities. With a focus on community banking, Hope Bancorp tailors its offerings to meet the needs of clients in diverse industries, including real estate, professional services and import/export trade.

In its lending business, Hope Bancorp provides commercial real estate loans, construction financing, working capital lines of credit and equipment financing.

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