East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,801,113 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 19,631 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 1.30% of East West Bancorp worth $172,488,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the third quarter worth $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the third quarter worth $26,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 83.4% in the fourth 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 stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the third quarter worth $79,000. Finally, Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 822.9% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,006 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $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.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,275 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were 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 owns 14,557 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,521,643.21. The trade was a 8.05 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.04% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on EWBC shares. Stephens lowered shares of East West Bancorp from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $97.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of East West Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $112.00 target price for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price 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. Finally, DA Davidson dropped their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $118.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, East West Bancorp has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $110.38.

East West Bancorp Stock Down 3.3 %

NASDAQ EWBC traded down $3.23 during trading on Friday, reaching $93.89. 717,176 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 864,196. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $98.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $93.54. 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 12-month low of $68.78 and a 12-month high of $113.95. The firm has a market cap of $13.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.30.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.56%. This is a boost from East West Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. East West Bancorp's payout ratio is presently 28.81%.

East West Bancorp 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.