East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) Shares Purchased by M&G Plc

M&G Plc raised its holdings in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 2.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 128,017 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,660 shares during the quarter. M&G Plc owned about 0.09% of East West Bancorp worth $10,625,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Capital Research Global Investors acquired a new position in East West Bancorp in the 1st quarter valued at about $338,142,000. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new position in East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $59,460,000. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC raised its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 112.5% during the 1st quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 1,441,198 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $114,013,000 after buying an additional 762,958 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 152.1% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 374,213 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,404,000 after buying an additional 225,799 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY lifted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 30.6% in the 2nd quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY now owns 649,708 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,578,000 after buying an additional 152,334 shares during the period. 89.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at East West Bancorp

In other news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.50, for a total transaction of $167,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,557 shares in the company, valued at $1,382,509.50. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.65, for a total transaction of $147,975.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,639 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,049,537.35. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.50, for a total transaction of $167,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 16,557 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,382,509.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 13,969 shares of company stock worth $1,345,956. Insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

East West Bancorp Stock Down 5.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:EWBC opened at $101.69 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The company has a market capitalization of $14.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.27. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 52-week low of $55.43 and a 52-week high of $107.33. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $87.03 and its 200-day simple moving average is $80.27.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.06 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $641.80 million. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 24.96% and a return on equity of 16.07%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.02 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 8.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 4th will be paid a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 4th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is currently 27.78%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on EWBC shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on East West Bancorp from $97.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wedbush raised their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $93.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on East West Bancorp from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, East West Bancorp presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $99.46.

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.