East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) Shares Purchased by Entropy Technologies LP

Entropy Technologies LP raised its position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) by 416.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 24,289 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 19,589 shares during the quarter. Entropy Technologies LP's holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $2,326,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of EWBC. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP boosted its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 39.9% during the 3rd quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 520,656 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $43,079,000 after purchasing an additional 148,530 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,882,803 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $652,223,000 after purchasing an additional 136,528 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth $12,734,000. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,804,288 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $149,287,000 after buying an additional 123,376 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,608,132 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $216,438,000 after buying an additional 122,738 shares in the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on EWBC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $96.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of East West Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $112.00 price objective on the stock. Wedbush boosted their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. DA Davidson decreased their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $118.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Compass Point boosted their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $110.38.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,275 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total transaction of $133,275.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,557 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,521,643.21. This represents a 8.05 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.04% of the company's stock.

East West Bancorp Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ EWBC traded up $0.55 on Thursday, reaching $97.66. 572,239 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 889,243. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $68.78 and a fifty-two week high of $113.95. The company has a 50 day moving average of $99.56 and a 200 day moving average of $93.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.54 billion, a PE ratio of 11.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.30.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.46%. This is an increase from East West Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. East West Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.81%.

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.