Rafferty Asset Management LLC Lowers Stock Position in East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Rafferty Asset Management LLC decreased its position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 16.2% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 101,019 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 19,586 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $10,753,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of EWBC. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 38.5% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 10,683,377 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,078,807,000 after acquiring an additional 2,968,716 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in East West Bancorp during the second quarter worth approximately $174,431,000. Boston Partners grew its holdings in East West Bancorp by 39.6% in the second quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,241,088 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $327,271,000 after purchasing an additional 920,159 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in East West Bancorp by 448.5% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 840,371 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $84,861,000 after purchasing an additional 687,145 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 61.9% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,418,174 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $143,207,000 after buying an additional 542,149 shares in the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

East West Bancorp Trading Down 6.1%

Shares of EWBC opened at $109.45 on Monday. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 52-week low of $68.27 and a 52-week high of $123.82. The stock has a market cap of $15.06 billion, a PE ratio of 11.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.92. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $116.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $109.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.52 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.48 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $753.79 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $745.04 million. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 28.36% and a return on equity of 15.72%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.10 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 8.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 2nd. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. This is an increase from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently 33.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on EWBC shares. Barclays increased their target price on East West Bancorp from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $141.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 26th. UBS Group set a $125.00 target price on shares of East West Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $111.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $128.14.

Insider Buying and Selling at East West Bancorp

In other news, EVP Gary Teo sold 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.59, for a total value of $858,130.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 5,252 shares in the company, valued at $643,842.68. This represents a 57.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Parker Shi sold 8,844 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.03, for a total value of $1,017,325.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 14,950 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,719,698.50. This represents a 37.17% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 119,065 shares of company stock worth $13,857,314. 1.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

East West Bancorp Profile

East West Bancorp, Inc is a bank holding company and the parent of East West Bank, one of the largest independent banks headquartered in Southern California. As a full-service commercial bank, it provides a broad range of financial products and services to business and individual customers, including commercial and residential real estate lending, working capital lines of credit, trade finance, and deposit and treasury management services. The company caters to both large and middle-market businesses, leveraging its expertise to serve clients engaged in cross-border trade and investment between the United States and Greater China.

Founded in Los Angeles in the early 1970s, East West Bank has grown steadily through organic expansion and strategic branch openings.