East West Bancorp, Inc. to Post FY2024 Earnings of $8.21 Per Share, DA Davidson Forecasts (NASDAQ:EWBC)

East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) - Equities researchers at DA Davidson cut their FY2024 EPS estimates for shares of East West Bancorp in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, April 17th. DA Davidson analyst G. Tenner now forecasts that the financial services provider will earn $8.21 per share for the year, down from their previous forecast of $8.28. The consensus estimate for East West Bancorp's current full-year earnings is $7.87 per share. DA Davidson also issued estimates for East West Bancorp's FY2025 earnings at $8.34 EPS.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Barclays initiated coverage on East West Bancorp in a research report on Friday, March 8th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $106.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $76.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $85.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $86.00 price target on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $83.15.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:EWBC traded up $0.24 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $71.80. 780,456 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,212,058. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $74.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $67.55. The firm has a market cap of $9.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.39. East West Bancorp has a one year low of $41.12 and a one year high of $79.54.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $654.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $641.91 million. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 29.11% and a return on equity of 18.47%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.37 EPS.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On East West Bancorp

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 92.7% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,409,477 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $317,263,000 after purchasing an additional 2,120,772 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $115,369,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $67,692,000. Boston Partners grew its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 48.5% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,713,987 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $195,279,000 after buying an additional 886,841 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 15.0% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,793,739 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $321,553,000 after buying an additional 756,930 shares during the period. 89.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.58, for a total transaction of $147,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,739 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,231,655.62. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,625 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.26, for a total value of $125,547.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,321 shares in the company, valued at $797,400.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.58, for a total value of $147,160.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 16,739 shares in the company, valued at $1,231,655.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.91% of the company's stock.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 1st. This is a boost from East West Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. East West Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.89%.

About East West Bancorp

East West Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for East West Bank that provides a range of personal and commercial banking services to businesses and individuals in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Consumer and Business Banking, Commercial Banking, and Other.