Zacks Research Issues Optimistic Estimate for EWBC Earnings

East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) – Investment analysts at Zacks Research upped their Q3 2026 earnings estimates for East West Bancorp in a research note issued to investors on Monday, December 9th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now forecasts that the financial services provider will earn $2.35 per share for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $2.34. The consensus estimate for East West Bancorp’s current full-year earnings is $8.39 per share.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Wedbush increased their price target on East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Compass Point upped their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays lifted their target price on East West Bancorp from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded East West Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $109.17.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:EWBC opened at $101.58 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $14.08 billion, a PE ratio of 12.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.92. East West Bancorp has a 1-year low of $67.27 and a 1-year high of $113.95. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $99.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $85.45.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 business posted $2.02 earnings per share.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On East West Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $4,157,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in East West Bancorp by 159.1% during the third quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 29,587 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,448,000 after purchasing an additional 18,166 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 830,133.3% during the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 24,907 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,061,000 after purchasing an additional 24,904 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in East West Bancorp during the second quarter valued at $852,000. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in East West Bancorp by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,804,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $149,287,000 after acquiring an additional 123,376 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at East West Bancorp

In other East West Bancorp news, Director Rudolph Estrada sold 469 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.04, for a total transaction of $45,980.76. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,740,210. This represents a 2.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.61, for a total value of $1,279,320.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 45,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,840,413.83. This represents a 20.90 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 23,969 shares of company stock valued at $2,458,276. 1.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 4th were paid a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.17%. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.78%.

About East West Bancorp

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.