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

East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the thirteen analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $109.77.

EWBC has been the subject of several research reports. Compass Point lifted their price target on East West Bancorp from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Wedbush increased their price objective on East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $93.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $112.00 price objective for the company.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other East West Bancorp news, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.65, for a total transaction of $147,975.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 10,639 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,049,537.35. The trade was a 12.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Rudolph Estrada sold 469 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.04, for a total value of $45,980.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 17,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,740,210. The trade was a 2.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 23,969 shares of company stock worth $2,458,276 in the last ninety days. 1.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On East West Bancorp

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of EWBC. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the third quarter worth about $4,157,000. Quest Partners LLC increased its position in East West Bancorp by 830,133.3% in the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 24,907 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,061,000 after acquiring an additional 24,904 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in East West Bancorp by 159.1% in the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 29,587 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,448,000 after acquiring an additional 18,166 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 7.3% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,804,288 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $149,287,000 after acquiring an additional 123,376 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the third quarter worth $5,978,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.53% of the company's stock.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

EWBC stock traded up $0.35 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $96.65. 348,024 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 932,657. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 1.28. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $101.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $86.87. East West Bancorp has a one year low of $67.27 and a one year high of $113.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.06 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $641.80 million. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 24.96% and a return on equity of 16.07%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.02 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that East West Bancorp will post 8.39 EPS for the current year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th were issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.28%. East West Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.78%.

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.