Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Sells 67,422 Shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA decreased its position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 3.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,177,971 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 67,422 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $231,845,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Park Place Capital Corp bought a new position in East West Bancorp during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Chung Wu Investment Group LLC bought a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. American National Bank & Trust bought a new stake in East West Bancorp in the second quarter worth $32,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd lifted its stake in East West Bancorp by 127.6% in the second quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 346 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust boosted its position in East West Bancorp by 82.6% during the third quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 336 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Dominic Ng sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.63, for a total value of $3,408,900.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 858,314 shares in the company, valued at $97,530,219.82. This represents a 3.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.04, for a total value of $1,000,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 45,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,551,820. This trade represents a 18.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 73,344 shares of company stock valued at $8,184,226. Insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Zacks Research downgraded East West Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 24th. Barclays raised their price target on East West Bancorp from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Wall Street Zen raised East West Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 11th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $126.00 price objective on shares of East West Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $126.38.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of East West Bancorp stock opened at $115.23 on Tuesday. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 12 month low of $68.27 and a 12 month high of $119.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $111.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $106.67.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.27. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 27.16% and a return on equity of 15.55%. The company had revenue of $645.23 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $722.75 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.14 EPS. East West Bancorp’s quarterly revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 8.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Company Profile

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.