Brokerages Set East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) PT at $80.36

Shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eleven have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $80.36.

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays assumed coverage on East West Bancorp in a research note on Friday, March 8th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $106.00 price target on the stock. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Compass Point upped their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $85.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on East West Bancorp from $76.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th.

East West Bancorp Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:EWBC opened at $79.11 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $11.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.38. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $73.60 and its 200-day moving average is $65.35. East West Bancorp has a 52-week low of $41.12 and a 52-week high of $79.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.13. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 18.47% and a net margin of 29.11%. The company had revenue of $654.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $641.91 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.37 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that East West Bancorp will post 7.9 earnings per share for the current year.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 2nd were issued a $0.55 dividend. This is a boost from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 1st. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.78%. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.89%.

Insider Activity at East West Bancorp

In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.58, for a total value of $147,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 16,739 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,231,655.62. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.58, for a total value of $147,160.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,739 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,231,655.62. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,625 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.26, for a total transaction of $125,547.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,321 shares in the company, valued at $797,400.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.91% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EWBC. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in East West Bancorp by 17.4% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 21,819 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,725,000 after acquiring an additional 3,228 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. bought a new position in East West Bancorp in the first quarter valued at approximately $836,000. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can grew its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 8.1% during the first quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 77,662 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,308,000 after buying an additional 5,821 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 221.0% during the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 2,600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $205,000 after buying an additional 1,790 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 0.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,803,992 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,090,792,000 after buying an additional 86,848 shares during the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.