StockNews.com Downgrades Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE) to Sell

StockNews.com lowered shares of Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Hope Bancorp from $12.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th.

Hope Bancorp Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:HOPE opened at $12.39 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.50 billion, a PE ratio of 14.75 and a beta of 1.13. Hope Bancorp has a 1 year low of $8.51 and a 1 year high of $13.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $12.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $11.60.

Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE) last announced its earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.22 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $246.92 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $121.67 million. Hope Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.52% and a net margin of 9.81%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.25 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Hope Bancorp will post 0.85 EPS for the current year.

Hope Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 21st. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 7th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.52%. Hope Bancorp’s payout ratio is 66.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hope Bancorp news, EVP Thomas Stenger sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.40, for a total value of $39,680.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $321,804.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, EVP Thomas Stenger sold 3,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.40, for a total transaction of $39,680.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $321,804.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director David P. Malone sold 10,428 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.71, for a total value of $132,539.88. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 109,991 shares in the company, valued at $1,397,985.61. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 25,831 shares of company stock worth $323,657 over the last 90 days. 5.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hope Bancorp

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Hope Bancorp by 9.0% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 648,095 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,140,000 after acquiring an additional 53,587 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hope Bancorp by 13.6% during the third quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 21,148 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 2,534 shares during the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hope Bancorp during the third quarter worth about $48,000. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of Hope Bancorp by 15.7% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 9,109 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $114,000 after purchasing an additional 1,238 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hope Bancorp in the 3rd quarter valued at about $508,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.00% of the company’s stock.

Hope Bancorp Company Profile

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.