Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Makes New $907,000 Investment in East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 7,023 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $907,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in EWBC. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors bought a new position in East West Bancorp in the third quarter worth $31,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in East West Bancorp in the second quarter worth $37,000. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in East West Bancorp in the second quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its position in East West Bancorp by 44.7% during the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 366 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 113 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at East West Bancorp

In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,000 shares of the 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,850,989.18. This represents a 6.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Irene H. Oh sold 800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.19, for a total transaction of $106,552.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 84,698 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,280,926.62. This represents a 0.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 23,511 shares of company stock valued at $3,077,741. 0.94% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on EWBC shares. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $152.00 target price on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Monday, August 10th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $155.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $128.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of East West Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $141.92.

East West Bancorp Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:EWBC opened at $129.43 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $131.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $122.20. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 12-month low of $92.67 and a 12-month high of $137.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.45, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.94.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last released 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. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.07% and a net margin of 30.45%.The firm had revenue of $789.98 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $784.47 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.24 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 17th. Investors of record on Monday, August 3rd were paid a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently 30.77%.

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.