East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) Sets New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $136.35 and last traded at $135.4840, with a volume of 25432 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $135.05.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. DA Davidson raised their price objective on East West Bancorp from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Barclays increased their target price on East West Bancorp from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. UBS Group lifted their price target on East West Bancorp from $125.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $150.00 price target on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $141.77.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $18.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $131.07 and its 200-day moving average is $121.33.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $789.98 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $784.47 million. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.07% and a net margin of 30.45%.East West Bancorp’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.24 EPS. Analysts predict that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 3rd will be paid a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently 30.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.02, for a total transaction of $135,020.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 13,709 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,850,989.18. This represents a 6.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.37, for a total value of $1,323,700.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 36,974 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,894,248.38. This trade represents a 21.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 33,511 shares of company stock worth $4,312,741. Corporate insiders own 0.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Marathon Mission Inc. grew its stake in East West Bancorp by 3.8% in the second quarter. Marathon Mission Inc. now owns 2,566 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $331,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its position in East West Bancorp by 35.4% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 390 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its position in East West Bancorp by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 5,674 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $604,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT lifted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT now owns 9,195 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,033,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the period. Finally, Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 6,404 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $720,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

About East West Bancorp

East West Bancorp, Inc is a bank holding company and the parent of East West Bank, one of the largest independent banks headquartered in Southern California. As a full-service commercial bank, it provides a broad range of financial products and services to business and individual customers, including commercial and residential real estate lending, working capital lines of credit, trade finance, and deposit and treasury management services. The company caters to both large and middle-market businesses, leveraging its expertise to serve clients engaged in cross-border trade and investment between the United States and Greater China.

Founded in Los Angeles in the early 1970s, East West Bank has grown steadily through organic expansion and strategic branch openings.