Hope Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOPE) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Hope Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOPE) have earned an average rating of “Hold” from the five ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $15.50.

HOPE has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded Hope Bancorp from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Hope Bancorp from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, DA Davidson increased their price objective on Hope Bancorp from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th.

Hope Bancorp Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of Hope Bancorp stock opened at $13.99 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.79 billion, a PE ratio of 13.99 and a beta of 0.83. Hope Bancorp has a twelve month low of $9.80 and a twelve month high of $14.48. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $13.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $12.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.26 by $0.01. Hope Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.71% and a net margin of 12.53%.The company had revenue of $147.82 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $146.50 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.22) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Hope Bancorp will post 1.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hope Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 6th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Hope Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.00%.

Insider Activity at Hope Bancorp

In other news, Director Daisy Y. Ha sold 26,995 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.24, for a total value of $384,408.80. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 346,120 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,928,748.80. This trade represents a 7.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 2.27% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hope Bancorp

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of HOPE. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hope Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hope Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Hope Bancorp in the second quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Hope Bancorp by 294.0% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,428 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 2,558 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its position in Hope Bancorp by 375.1% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 3,625 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 2,862 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.00% of the company’s stock.

Hope Bancorp Company Profile

Hope Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Hope Bank, a California-chartered financial institution serving small and middle-market businesses, professionals and affluent individuals. The company’s principal activities include accepting a variety of deposit products—such as checking accounts, savings and money market accounts, and time deposits—and extending commercial credit facilities. With a focus on community banking, Hope Bancorp tailors its offerings to meet the needs of clients in diverse industries, including real estate, professional services and import/export trade.

In its lending business, Hope Bancorp provides commercial real estate loans, construction financing, working capital lines of credit and equipment financing.