Retirement Systems of Alabama Trims Stock Position in East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Retirement Systems of Alabama cut its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 2.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 352,002 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 10,026 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $39,562,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EWBC. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in East West Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth about $162,000. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 7,083 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $796,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the period. Net Worth Advisory Group acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at about $224,000. Dakota Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth about $755,000. Finally, Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. now owns 236,712 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,604,000 after buying an additional 5,011 shares during the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on EWBC shares. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on East West Bancorp from $141.00 to $128.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on East West Bancorp from $141.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $131.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $133.00 target price for the company. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, East West Bancorp has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $128.29.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of East West Bancorp stock opened at $106.76 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $14.69 billion, a PE ratio of 11.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.90. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a twelve month low of $68.27 and a twelve month high of $123.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $112.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $109.36.

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

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 2nd were given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This is a positive change from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 2nd. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is 33.61%.

Insider Activity at East West Bancorp

In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,421 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.00, for a total value of $169,099.00. Following the sale, the director owned 13,553 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,612,807. This trade represents a 9.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dominic Ng sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.82, for a total transaction of $5,891,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 808,331 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $95,237,558.42. The trade was a 5.83% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 60,221 shares of company stock worth $7,139,287 over the last 90 days. 1.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About East West Bancorp

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.