Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Raises Stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP boosted its position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 48.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 874,152 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 284,617 shares during the quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP owned approximately 0.64% of East West Bancorp worth $98,246,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC purchased a new stake in East West Bancorp in the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new stake in East West Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors purchased a new stake in East West Bancorp in the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 115.0% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 344 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 113 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

East West Bancorp Stock Up 3.4%

Shares of NASDAQ EWBC opened at $125.21 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 12 month low of $90.32 and a 12 month high of $127.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.15 billion, a PE ratio of 12.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.94. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $118.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $114.55.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.57 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.46 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $773.75 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $767.80 million. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 29.59% and a return on equity of 16.00%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.08 EPS. Equities analysts expect that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.6 earnings per share for the current year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 4th were given a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 4th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.97%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on EWBC shares. Citigroup increased their price objective on East West Bancorp from $139.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on East West Bancorp from $141.00 to $128.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. TD Cowen increased their price objective on East West Bancorp from $137.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. DA Davidson increased their price objective on East West Bancorp from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price objective on East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $133.69.

Insider Buying and Selling at East West Bancorp

In other East West Bancorp news, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.50, for a total transaction of $1,235,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 46,974 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,801,289. This trade represents a 17.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Archana Deskus sold 1,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.55, for a total value of $225,990.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 13,231 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,661,152.05. This represents a 11.98% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 41,800 shares of company stock valued at $5,165,690. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

East West Bancorp 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.