New York State Teachers Retirement System Cuts Position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

New York State Teachers Retirement System decreased its position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) by 3.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 162,327 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 5,100 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned approximately 0.12% of East West Bancorp worth $15,544,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of EWBC. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in East West Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 83.4% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 662 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 301 shares in the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of East West Bancorp in the third quarter worth $79,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 822.9% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,006 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $83,000 after purchasing an additional 897 shares in the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EWBC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Truist Financial upped 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 note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $103.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stephens lowered shares of East West Bancorp from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. StockNews.com cut East West Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on East West Bancorp from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $110.38.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,275 shares of the firm's 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 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.04% of the company's stock.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of East West Bancorp stock traded down $1.11 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $97.12. The company's stock had a trading volume of 644,610 shares, compared to its average volume of 868,652. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.91. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 12-month low of $68.78 and a 12-month high of $113.95. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $98.95 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $93.51. The company has a market cap of $13.46 billion, a PE ratio of 11.66, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.30.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. This is a positive change from East West Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. East West Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.81%.

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.