East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) Cut to “Sell” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report issued on Friday.

EWBC has been the subject of several other reports. DA Davidson decreased their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Compass Point lifted their price target on East West Bancorp from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Barclays cut their price objective on East West Bancorp from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. UBS Group initiated coverage on East West Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $112.00 target price for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on East West Bancorp from $87.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $110.23.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of EWBC opened at $102.93 on Friday. East West Bancorp has a 52-week low of $67.27 and a 52-week high of $113.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market cap of $14.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.00, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.30. The business’s 50 day moving average is $101.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.31.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th will be given a $0.60 dividend. This represents a yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 3rd. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.78%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.61, for a total value of $1,279,320.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 45,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,840,413.83. This represents a 20.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 transaction of $45,980.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 17,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,740,210. This trade represents a 2.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 23,969 shares of company stock valued at $2,458,276. Insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On East West Bancorp

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AXA S.A. lifted its holdings in East West Bancorp by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 93,192 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,824,000 after acquiring an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in East West Bancorp by 0.3% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 299,962 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $21,687,000 after purchasing an additional 806 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in East West Bancorp by 152.1% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 374,213 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,404,000 after buying an additional 225,799 shares in the last quarter. Scientech Research LLC grew its position in East West Bancorp by 362.4% in the second quarter. Scientech Research LLC now owns 21,095 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,545,000 after buying an additional 16,533 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning lifted its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 8.9% during the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 15,102 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,106,000 after acquiring an additional 1,236 shares during the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.