Hope Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOPE) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Hope Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOPE - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,020,000 shares, a decline of 25.7% from the January 15th total of 2,720,000 shares. Currently, 1.8% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 721,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.8 days.

Hope Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:HOPE traded down $0.05 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $11.32. 491,943 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 765,690. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $12.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $12.52. Hope Bancorp has a 12 month low of $9.80 and a 12 month high of $14.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.81 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.17 by $0.03. Hope Bancorp had a return on equity of 4.84% and a net margin of 9.95%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Hope Bancorp will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hope Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 6th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.95%. Hope Bancorp's payout ratio is 68.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hope Bancorp

In other Hope Bancorp news, EVP Angelee Harris sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.16, for a total value of $42,480.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 19,795 shares in the company, valued at $280,297.20. The trade was a 13.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Thomas Stenger sold 4,185 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.83, for a total value of $49,508.55. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 19,267 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $227,928.61. This trade represents a 17.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 105,055 shares of company stock worth $1,396,908 over the last 90 days. 5.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hope Bancorp

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Jane Street Group LLC raised its holdings in Hope Bancorp by 66.8% in the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 170,936 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,147,000 after acquiring an additional 68,460 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Hope Bancorp by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 648,095 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $8,140,000 after acquiring an additional 53,587 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Hope Bancorp by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 893,172 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $11,218,000 after acquiring an additional 95,570 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in Hope Bancorp by 47.0% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,055,151 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $12,968,000 after acquiring an additional 337,599 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its holdings in Hope Bancorp by 109.9% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 253,437 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,183,000 after acquiring an additional 132,677 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.00% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Hope Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Hope Bancorp from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, DA Davidson decreased their price target on Hope Bancorp from $15.50 to $14.50 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hope Bancorp presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $12.88.

About Hope Bancorp

Hope Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Bank of Hope that provides retail and commercial banking services for businesses and individuals in the United States. It accepts personal and business checking, money market, savings, time deposit, and individual retirement accounts. The company also offers loans comprising commercial and industrial loans to businesses for various purposes, such as working capital, purchasing inventory, debt refinancing, business acquisitions, international trade finance, other business-related financing, and loans syndication services; commercial real estate loans; residential mortgage loans; small business administration loans; and consumer loans, such as single-family mortgage, home equity, automobile, credit card, and personal loans.