LSV Asset Management Sells 38,700 Shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

LSV Asset Management lessened its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 6.9% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 523,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 38,700 shares during the quarter. LSV Asset Management’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $41,414,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in East West Bancorp by 29.2% in the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 840 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 66.7% during the 4th quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 39.6% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 747 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 212 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 52.8% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 666 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in East West Bancorp by 9.4% in the fourth 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 during the period. 89.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:EWBC traded up $0.53 on Friday, hitting $76.30. 737,270 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,043,249. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $73.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $73.60. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 1-year low of $49.59 and a 1-year high of $79.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.38 and a beta of 1.32.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.00 by $0.08. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 17.43% and a net margin of 26.78%. The business had revenue of $644.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $636.77 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.32 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 8.02 EPS for the current year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 3rd were given a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.88%. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.71%.

Insider Transactions at East West Bancorp

In related news, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.76, for a total value of $590,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 57,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,234,045.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.76, for a total value of $590,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 57,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,234,045.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Irene H. Oh sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.58, for a total value of $775,800.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 127,193 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,867,632.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $90.00 target price on shares of East West Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on East West Bancorp from $86.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Barclays decreased their price objective on East West Bancorp from $106.00 to $105.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Stephens boosted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $83.31.

East West Bancorp 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.