Hope Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOPE) Short Interest Update

Hope Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOPE - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,660,000 shares, a growth of 22.0% from the March 31st total of 3,000,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,060,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.5 days. Approximately 3.0% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hope Bancorp

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Hope Bancorp by 181.9% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,407 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 1,553 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in shares of Hope Bancorp by 31.2% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 3,563 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 848 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hope Bancorp by 819.1% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,713 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 3,309 shares during the period. KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of Hope Bancorp by 36.6% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 7,093 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $87,000 after purchasing an additional 1,901 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Hope Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at $105,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.00% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Hope Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Hope Bancorp from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, DA Davidson cut their target price on Hope Bancorp from $15.50 to $14.50 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th.

Hope Bancorp Price Performance

HOPE traded up $0.24 during trading on Thursday, hitting $10.16. 1,118,938 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 821,324. The company has a market cap of $1.23 billion, a PE ratio of 12.39 and a beta of 0.88. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $10.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $11.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Hope Bancorp has a 1 year low of $8.83 and a 1 year high of $14.54.

Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $217.17 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $114.97 million. Hope Bancorp had a return on equity of 4.84% and a net margin of 9.95%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.23 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hope Bancorp will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hope Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd will be issued a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 2nd. Hope Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 71.79%.

Hope Bancorp Company Profile

Hope Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Bank of Hope that provides retail and commercial banking services for businesses and individuals in the United States. It accepts personal and business checking, money market, savings, time deposit, and individual retirement accounts. The company also offers loans comprising commercial and industrial loans to businesses for various purposes, such as working capital, purchasing inventory, debt refinancing, business acquisitions, international trade finance, other business-related financing, and loans syndication services; commercial real estate loans; residential mortgage loans; small business administration loans; and consumer loans, such as single-family mortgage, home equity, automobile, credit card, and personal loans.