Vest Financial LLC Sells 122,334 Shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Key Points

• Vest Financial reduced its East West Bancorp stake by 35.6% in the third quarter, selling 122,334 shares and retaining 221,767 shares valued at approximately $27.5 million.
• East West Bancorp delivered a strong third quarter, with $2.76 in earnings per share and $822.7 million in revenue, exceeding analyst estimates. Management also raised full-year net interest income growth guidance to 9%–10% as deposits and loans expanded.
• The stock traded near $131.39, while analysts maintained a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $144.15. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, although recent insider selling may weigh on investor sentiment.

Vest Financial LLC reduced its stake in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) by 35.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 221,767 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 122,334 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC owned 0.16% of East West Bancorp worth $27,484,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of EWBC. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,744,958,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in East West Bancorp in the second quarter valued at about $221,652,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in East West Bancorp in the second quarter valued at about $130,744,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in East West Bancorp in the second quarter valued at about $36,995,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in East West Bancorp by 503.5% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 263,333 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $28,113,000 after purchasing an additional 219,700 shares in the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

East West Bancorp News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting East West Bancorp this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Record Q3 performance exceeded expectations. East West Bancorp reported net income of $382 million, or $2.76 per diluted share, compared with analyst expectations of approximately $2.69–$2.72. Revenue reached a record $823 million, up 5.8% year over year and above the roughly $811 million consensus estimate. East West Bancorp Releases Q3 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Net interest income guidance was raised. Management increased its full-year net interest income growth outlook to 9%–10%, signaling confidence in lending activity, funding trends and future bank earnings. East West Bancorp: 3 Key Takeaways for Long-Term Investors
• Positive Sentiment: Deposit growth strengthened the outlook. Net deposits increased by more than $1.4 billion during the quarter, while total deposits reached $71.5 billion and loans reached $59.7 billion at September 30. Net interest income rose 5% sequentially to $719 million.
• Positive Sentiment: The dividend was maintained. The board declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.80 per share, or $3.20 annualized, payable November 17 to shareholders of record November 2. The indicated yield is approximately 2.4%. East West Bancorp Declares Fourth-Quarter Dividend
• Negative Sentiment: Recent insider trading was a potential overhang. Reported insider activity showed 11 open-market sales and no purchases over the past six months, including sales by senior executives. These transactions may temper some investor enthusiasm, although they do not offset the quarter’s fundamental improvements.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other East West Bancorp news, Director Jack Liu sold 1,000 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director owned 13,709 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,850,989.18. The trade was a 6.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas Krause sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.37, for a total transaction of $1,323,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 36,974 shares in the company, valued at $4,894,248.38. This represents a 21.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 11,810 shares of company stock worth $1,564,344. Company insiders own 0.94% of the company's stock.

East West Bancorp Stock Up 2.4%

NASDAQ:EWBC opened at $131.39 on Thursday. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $128.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $126.79. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 52-week low of $98.08 and a 52-week high of $137.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88. The company has a market cap of $18.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.98.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 20th. The financial services provider reported $2.76 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.72 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $822.72 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $811.07 million. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.07% and a net margin of 30.75%. The company's revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.65 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.64 EPS for the current year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 2nd will be issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 2nd. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. East West Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on EWBC. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price objective on East West Bancorp from $152.00 to $146.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded East West Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on East West Bancorp from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. Stephens increased their target price on East West Bancorp from $129.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on East West Bancorp from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, East West Bancorp currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $144.15.

About East West Bancorp

East West Bancorp, Inc is the parent company of East West Bank, a full-service commercial bank headquartered in Pasadena, California. The bank serves businesses, professionals, consumers and institutions through a range of deposit, lending and financial services.

Its products and services include commercial and industrial loans, commercial real estate financing, residential and consumer lending, checking and savings accounts, treasury management, international banking, wealth management and foreign-exchange services.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding EWBC? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.