Jennison Associates LLC Has $66.64 Million Position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) by 10.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 926,208 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 88,224 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC owned about 0.66% of East West Bancorp worth $66,641,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Denali Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 66.7% in the 4th quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 500 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 65.1% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 535 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 211 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 9.4% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,714 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $195,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 63,459 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,345,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC raised its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 22.8% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,825 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $96,000 after acquiring an additional 339 shares in the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of EWBC stock traded up $0.83 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $75.30. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,417,760 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,214,775. The company has a 50 day moving average of $74.46 and a 200 day moving average of $68.11. The stock has a market cap of $10.48 billion, a PE ratio of 9.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 12-month low of $41.12 and a 12-month high of $79.54.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.13. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 29.11% and a return on equity of 18.47%. The business had revenue of $654.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $641.91 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.37 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 7.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Investors of record on Friday, May 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.92%. East West Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.89%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EWBC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Compass Point boosted their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Barclays began coverage on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Friday, March 8th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $106.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $85.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $83.42.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.58, for a total transaction of $147,160.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 16,739 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,231,655.62. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other East West Bancorp news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were 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 $1,231,655.62. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,625 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.26, for a total transaction of $125,547.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 10,321 shares of the company's stock, valued at $797,400.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

East West Bancorp Company Profile

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.