East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) Short Interest Update

East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 4,030,000 shares, a decline of 6.1% from the November 15th total of 4,290,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 809,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.0 days. Currently, 2.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on EWBC shares. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Tuesday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $112.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on East West Bancorp from $87.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on East West Bancorp from $96.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Stephens lowered shares of East West Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped 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. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, East West Bancorp presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $109.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other East West Bancorp 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 sale, the director now directly owns 10,639 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,049,537.35. This represents a 12.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Rudolph Estrada sold 469 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.04, for a total transaction of $45,980.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 17,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,740,210. The trade was a 2.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 23,969 shares of company stock worth $2,458,276 in the last three months. 1.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On East West Bancorp

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EWBC. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at $852,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in East West Bancorp by 3.8% in the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,606 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $264,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its holdings in East West Bancorp by 72.0% during the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 7,006 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $513,000 after buying an additional 2,933 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 30.2% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,997 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $237,000 after buying an additional 696 shares during the period. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. acquired a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $221,000. 89.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of East West Bancorp stock opened at $100.18 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $100.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $86.03. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. East West Bancorp has a 1-year low of $67.27 and a 1-year high of $113.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 1.28.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 24.96% and a return on equity of 16.07%. The firm had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $641.80 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.02 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that East West Bancorp will post 8.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th were paid a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.