Hanson & Doremus Investment Management Has $688,000 Position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

Hanson & Doremus Investment Management lowered its holdings in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,189 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 136 shares during the quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $688,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EWBC. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 152.1% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 374,213 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,404,000 after purchasing an additional 225,799 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP grew its position in East West Bancorp by 39.9% in the third quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 520,656 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $43,079,000 after acquiring an additional 148,530 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its stake in East West Bancorp by 1.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,882,803 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $652,223,000 after acquiring an additional 136,528 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in East West Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $12,734,000. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 7.3% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,804,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $149,287,000 after acquiring an additional 123,376 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $93.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup raised their price objective 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 downgraded East West Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. UBS Group started 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. Finally, DA Davidson reduced their price objective on East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One 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, East West Bancorp has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $110.38.

Insider Activity at East West Bancorp

In related news, Director Rudolph Estrada sold 469 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.04, for a total value of $45,980.76. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,750 shares in the company, valued at $1,740,210. This trade represents a 2.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Jack C. Liu sold 725 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.50, for a total transaction of $75,762.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,832 shares in the company, valued at $1,654,444. The trade was a 4.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 13,194 shares of company stock worth $1,401,063 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:EWBC opened at $103.25 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 1-year low of $67.27 and a 1-year high of $113.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.30. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $101.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $91.70.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.32%. This is an increase from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is 27.78%.

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.