The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Has $50.95 Million Stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company trimmed its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) by 10.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 532,082 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 65,308 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 0.38% of East West Bancorp worth $50,952,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in East West Bancorp during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 73.2% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 414 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in East West Bancorp by 119.1% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 563 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in East West Bancorp by 83.4% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 662 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 301 shares in the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at East West Bancorp

In related news, CEO Dominic Ng sold 20,181 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.01, for a total value of $1,816,491.81. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 988,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at $88,941,851.33. This trade represents a 2.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders sold 60,181 shares of company stock valued at $5,416,694 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.04% of the company's stock.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of East West Bancorp stock traded down $0.81 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $87.37. 122,778 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 910,915. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 1-year low of $68.27 and a 1-year high of $113.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $84.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $94.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.05 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $693.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $673.02 million. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 25.73% and a return on equity of 15.71%. As a group, equities analysts predict that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 8.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 2nd. East West Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is 28.64%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EWBC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. DA Davidson cut their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $118.00 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $97.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of East West Bancorp from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $118.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Monday, April 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of East West Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $100.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $105.46.

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.