UMB Bank n.a. Buys 704 Shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 106.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,366 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 704 shares during the quarter. UMB Bank n.a.’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $123,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of East West Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 73.2% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 414 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 89.7% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 518 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 119.1% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 563 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $100,000. Institutional investors own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ EWBC opened at $94.24 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.99 billion, a PE ratio of 11.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.92. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $86.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $93.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.92. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 1-year low of $68.27 and a 1-year high of $113.95.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.05 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $693.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $673.02 million. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 15.71% and a net margin of 25.73%. On average, research analysts predict that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 8.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.55%. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently 28.64%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on East West Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $115.00 target price for the company. DA Davidson cut their target price on East West Bancorp from $118.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on East West Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. They set a “hold” rating and a $102.00 target price for the company. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on East West Bancorp from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $107.85.

Insider Activity at East West Bancorp

In related news, EVP Lisa L. Kim sold 2,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.04, for a total transaction of $199,584.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,849 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,411,248.96. This represents a 12.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Dominic Ng sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.43, for a total transaction of $3,857,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 928,314 shares in the company, valued at $89,517,319.02. This trade represents a 4.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 61,919 shares of company stock worth $5,840,494. Company insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

East West Bancorp Profile

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.