Edgestream Partners L.P. Boosts Stock Position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

Edgestream Partners L.P. raised its stake in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) by 30.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 53,205 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 12,268 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P.'s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $5,095,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its stake in East West Bancorp by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 38,500 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,687,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,336 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $224,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its position in East West Bancorp by 7.4% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,537 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $128,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Lindenwold Advisors INC grew its stake in East West Bancorp by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Lindenwold Advisors INC now owns 7,270 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $602,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System raised its holdings in East West Bancorp by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 40,196 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,849,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.53% of the company's stock.

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East West Bancorp Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of EWBC stock traded up $1.08 on Wednesday, hitting $85.43. The stock had a trading volume of 901,174 shares, compared to its average volume of 966,760. The company's 50 day moving average price is $97.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $94.81. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 1 year low of $68.78 and a 1 year high of $113.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.28.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. This is a boost from East West Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. East West Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.81%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,275 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total value of $133,275.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,557 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,521,643.21. This trade represents a 8.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Dominic Ng sold 20,181 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.01, for a total value of $1,816,491.81. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 988,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $88,941,851.33. This trade represents a 2.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 42,362 shares of company stock valued at $3,842,022. 1.04% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on EWBC. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on East West Bancorp from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Stephens lowered East West Bancorp from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. DA Davidson cut their target price on East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $118.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com upgraded East West Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $97.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, East West Bancorp presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $110.38.

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.