East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) Stake Raised by Edgestream Partners L.P.

Edgestream Partners L.P. raised its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 30.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 53,205 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,268 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P.’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $5,095,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in East West Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 73.2% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 414 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 83.4% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 662 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 301 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp in the third quarter worth $79,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

East West Bancorp Stock Down 0.4 %

East West Bancorp stock opened at $89.08 on Friday. 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 fifty-two week low of $68.78 and a fifty-two week high of $113.95. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $97.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $94.59. The firm has a market cap of $12.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.30.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This is an increase from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.69%. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.81%.

Insider Buying and Selling at East West Bancorp

In other 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 transaction of $133,275.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,557 shares of the company’s stock, 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dominic Ng sold 20,181 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.01, for a total value of $1,816,491.81. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 988,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $88,941,851.33. This trade represents a 2.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 42,362 shares of company stock valued at $3,842,022 in the last 90 days. 1.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on EWBC shares. Compass Point lifted their price objective on East West Bancorp from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. DA Davidson lowered their price target on East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Barclays dropped their price objective on East West Bancorp from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com cut shares of East West Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $112.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $110.38.

East West Bancorp Company 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.