Intech Investment Management LLC Purchases 31,068 Shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) by 88.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 66,144 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 31,068 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC's holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $6,334,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 6,486 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $621,000 after buying an additional 630 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd grew its stake in East West Bancorp by 1,178.1% in the 4th quarter. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd now owns 10,225 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $979,000 after acquiring an additional 9,425 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its holdings in East West Bancorp by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 11,777 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,128,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH lifted its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 28,429 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,749,000 after purchasing an additional 1,846 shares during the period. Finally, Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 272,600 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,104,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.53% of the company's stock.

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Insider Transactions at East West Bancorp

In other news, CEO Dominic Ng sold 19,819 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total value of $1,783,710.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 968,314 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,148,260. The trade was a 2.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,275 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total transaction of $133,275.75. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 14,557 shares in the company, valued at $1,521,643.21. This trade represents a 8.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 62,181 shares of company stock worth $5,625,732. Insiders own 1.04% of the company's stock.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of EWBC traded up $0.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $89.99. The company had a trading volume of 4,354,907 shares, compared to its average volume of 840,237. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.92. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a twelve month low of $68.78 and a twelve month high of $113.95. The company's 50-day moving average is $96.08 and its 200-day moving average is $95.01. The company has a market capitalization of $12.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.28.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This is a boost from East West Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. East West Bancorp's payout ratio is presently 28.81%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on EWBC shares. Barclays reduced their target price on East West Bancorp from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Stephens downgraded shares of East West Bancorp from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on East West Bancorp from $127.00 to $118.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $111.31.

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.