East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) has received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the twelve brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $102.25.

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $87.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $93.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of East West Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Compass Point increased their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $93.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of East West Bancorp stock traded down $0.37 on Friday, hitting $109.68. 309,372 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 925,388. East West Bancorp has a 1-year low of $61.87 and a 1-year high of $113.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $94.72 and a 200 day moving average price of $83.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.06 by $0.03. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.07% and a net margin of 24.96%. The firm had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $641.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.02 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that East West Bancorp will post 8.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th were paid a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.01%. East West Bancorp's payout ratio is 27.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other East West Bancorp news, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 12,000 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.61, for a total transaction of $1,279,320.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 45,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,840,413.83. The trade was a 20.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Rudolph Estrada sold 469 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.04, for a total transaction of $45,980.76. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 17,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,740,210. The trade was a 2.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 23,969 shares of company stock worth $2,458,276 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.04% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On East West Bancorp

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in East West Bancorp in the third quarter worth $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in East West Bancorp by 362.8% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 361 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares during the period. Finally, American Capital Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

East West Bancorp Company 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.