Zacks Research Analysts Lift Earnings Estimates for EWBC

East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC - Free Report) - Investment analysts at Zacks Research upped their Q2 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of East West Bancorp in a report issued on Monday, April 7th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the financial services provider will post earnings of $2.15 per share for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $2.14. The consensus estimate for East West Bancorp's current full-year earnings is $8.85 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for East West Bancorp's Q4 2025 earnings at $2.23 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $2.31 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $2.39 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $2.47 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $9.99 EPS.

EWBC has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of East West Bancorp from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $118.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $100.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. StockNews.com lowered East West Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, March 28th. Barclays lowered their price target on East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $105.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on East West Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $112.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $106.46.

East West Bancorp Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:EWBC traded up $0.99 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $72.16. 1,362,350 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 912,129. The company has a market capitalization of $9.99 billion, a PE ratio of 8.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.09. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $89.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $95.16. East West Bancorp has a 52-week low of $68.27 and a 52-week high of $113.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.91.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in East West Bancorp by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 10,171 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $974,000 after acquiring an additional 336 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in East West Bancorp by 108.5% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 54,851 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,282,000 after purchasing an additional 28,549 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 1,667.7% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 670,156 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $64,174,000 after purchasing an additional 632,245 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in East West Bancorp by 18.2% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 100,320 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $9,699,000 after purchasing an additional 15,475 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in East West Bancorp by 10.0% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 755,555 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $72,352,000 after buying an additional 68,528 shares during the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at East West Bancorp

In other East West Bancorp 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 value of $133,275.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,557 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,521,643.21. This represents a 8.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Dominic Ng sold 19,819 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total transaction of $1,783,710.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 968,314 shares in the company, valued at $87,148,260. This represents a 2.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 62,181 shares of company stock valued at $5,625,732. 1.04% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.33%. 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%.

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.