East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) Stock: Insider Dominic Ng Sells 34,977 Shares

East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) CEO Dominic Ng sold 34,977 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.12, for a total value of $4,621,161.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 672,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $88,910,550.36. This represents a 4.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of EWBC stock opened at $130.74 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 12 month low of $98.72 and a 12 month high of $137.47. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $128.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $123.53. The firm has a market cap of $17.91 billion, a PE ratio of 12.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.99.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The financial services provider reported $2.76 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.72 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $822.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $811.07 million. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 30.75% and a return on equity of 16.07%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.65 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 17th. Investors of record on Monday, November 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 2nd. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.45%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On East West Bancorp

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in East West Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,744,958,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in East West Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth about $221,652,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in East West Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at about $130,744,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in East West Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,995,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 503.5% during the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 263,333 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,113,000 after purchasing an additional 219,700 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup upped their price objective on East West Bancorp from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Hovde Group initiated coverage on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Tuesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $153.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $164.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $152.00 to $146.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 14th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $145.71.

Key East West Bancorp News

Here are the key news stories impacting East West Bancorp this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Hovde Group initiated coverage with an Outperform rating and a $153 price target. Wells Fargo also raised its target to $155 and reiterated an Overweight rating, signaling analysts see further upside. Hovde Group initiates coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: A report described short interest as having risen, but listed the actual short position as zero shares and a 0.0-day ratio. The conflicting figures make this data difficult to interpret as a clear trading signal.
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Dominic Ng sold 34,977 shares for about $4.62 million, reducing his direct holdings by 4.94%. He retained 672,953 shares after the transaction; insider sales can attract investor attention but do not by themselves establish a change in the company’s outlook. CEO stock sale report

About East West Bancorp

East West Bancorp, Inc. is the holding company for East West Bank, a commercial bank headquartered in Pasadena, California. Founded in 1973, the bank initially served Chinese American communities in Southern California and has since expanded its services and geographic reach. East West Bank provides personal and business banking, commercial lending, trade finance, treasury management and other financial services. Its customers include individuals, small and midsize businesses, and larger companies, with a focus on supporting commerce between the United States and Asia.