Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE) Stock Price Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Hope Bancorp's stock recently crossed above its 200-day moving average, reaching a high of $10.59 and closing at $10.55 with substantial trading volume of 897,812 shares.
• Analysts have upgraded Hope Bancorp from a "sell" to a "hold" rating, indicating a more favorable outlook for investors.
• The company has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.14, representing an annualized yield of 5.4%, although its payout ratio is notably high at 160.00%.

Hope Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOPE - Get Free Report)'s share price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $10.50 and traded as high as $10.59. Hope Bancorp shares last traded at $10.55, with a volume of 897,812 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Hope Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th.

Hope Bancorp Trading Up 0.5%

The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $10.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $10.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.59 and a beta of 0.94.

Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported ($0.22) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21 by ($0.43). The company had revenue of $94.58 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $133.90 million. Hope Bancorp had a net margin of 4.27% and a return on equity of 4.45%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.22 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Hope Bancorp, Inc. will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Hope Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st were issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 1st. Hope Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 160.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hope Bancorp

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HOPE. LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Hope Bancorp by 11.1% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 24,498 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $301,000 after acquiring an additional 2,443 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its holdings in shares of Hope Bancorp by 24.4% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 72,609 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $892,000 after acquiring an additional 14,231 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Hope Bancorp by 72.8% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,339,171 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $16,458,000 after acquiring an additional 564,014 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in shares of Hope Bancorp by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 339,560 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,173,000 after acquiring an additional 1,560 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hope Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth about $912,000. 84.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Hope Bancorp

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.