East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) Shares Acquired by Ieq Capital LLC

Ieq Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 178.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 8,821 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,654 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $845,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 10,171 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $974,000 after buying an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 108.5% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 54,851 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,282,000 after buying an additional 28,549 shares in the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the third quarter worth about $4,157,000. Quest Partners LLC grew its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 830,133.3% during the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 24,907 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,061,000 after buying an additional 24,904 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its stake in East West Bancorp by 159.1% during the third quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 29,587 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,448,000 after purchasing an additional 18,166 shares during the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

East West Bancorp Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of EWBC stock opened at $93.36 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $98.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $93.99. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 1-year low of $68.78 and a 1-year high of $113.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.94 billion, a PE ratio of 11.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.30. 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 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. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. This is a positive change from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com cut East West Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Compass Point boosted their target price 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. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $97.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Stephens cut East West Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on East West Bancorp in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $112.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $110.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other East West Bancorp news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,275 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total value of $133,275.75. Following the sale, 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.04% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.