Park Avenue Securities LLC Buys New Shares in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

Park Avenue Securities LLC purchased a new stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 3,007 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $249,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EWBC. M&R Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in East West Bancorp by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. now owns 41,007 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,393,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in East West Bancorp in the second quarter valued at approximately $231,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,097,000. Ariadne Wealth Management LP acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth about $714,000. Finally, Truist Financial Corp increased its stake in East West Bancorp by 6.1% in the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 25,118 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,839,000 after purchasing an additional 1,435 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EWBC opened at $89.30 on Tuesday. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $50.23 and a 52 week high of $89.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $81.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $77.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.43 billion, a PE ratio of 11.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.29.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $638.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $631.61 million. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 25.40%. The firm’s revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.20 EPS. Analysts predict that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 8.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were paid a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 2nd. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.71%.

Insider Activity at East West Bancorp

In related news, EVP Gary Teo sold 3,450 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.73, for a total transaction of $302,668.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,875 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,392,713.75. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other East West Bancorp news, EVP Gary Teo sold 3,450 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.73, for a total value of $302,668.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,875 shares in the company, valued at $1,392,713.75. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.50, for a total value of $167,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,382,509.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 13,346 shares of company stock worth $1,108,160. Company insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on EWBC. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on East West Bancorp from $72.50 to $92.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. StockNews.com raised East West Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $86.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $95.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $96.00 to $93.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $92.77.

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.