Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE) Downgraded to Sell Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report published on Thursday morning.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Hope Bancorp from $12.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th.

Hope Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:HOPE opened at $13.82 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $12.88 and a 200 day moving average of $11.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The stock has a market cap of $1.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.45 and a beta of 1.13. Hope Bancorp has a 12 month low of $9.45 and a 12 month high of $14.53.

Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by ($0.01). Hope Bancorp had a net margin of 9.81% and a return on equity of 5.52%. The firm had revenue of $246.92 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $121.67 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.25 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Hope Bancorp will post 0.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hope Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 21st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 7th were issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 7th. Hope Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.67%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director David P. Malone sold 10,428 shares of Hope Bancorp stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.71, for a total value of $132,539.88. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 109,991 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,397,985.61. The trade was a 8.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Daisy Y. Ha sold 27,104 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.83, for a total transaction of $374,848.32. Following the sale, the director now owns 446,806 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,179,326.98. This represents a 5.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 136,902 shares of company stock worth $1,829,678. 5.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hope Bancorp

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in Hope Bancorp by 11.8% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 189,921 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,186,000 after buying an additional 20,015 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Hope Bancorp by 7.3% in the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 23,380 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $269,000 after purchasing an additional 1,600 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its position in Hope Bancorp by 6.3% during the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 108,683 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,248,000 after buying an additional 6,481 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Hope Bancorp by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 174,729 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,012,000 after acquiring an additional 7,652 shares during the period. Finally, EMC Capital Management boosted its stake in Hope Bancorp by 28.2% during the first quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 29,566 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $340,000 after acquiring an additional 6,500 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.00% of the company’s stock.

Hope Bancorp Company Profile

Hope Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Bank of Hope that provides retail and commercial banking services for businesses and individuals in the United States. It accepts personal and business checking, money market, savings, time deposit, and individual retirement accounts. The company also offers loans comprising commercial and industrial loans to businesses for various purposes, such as working capital, purchasing inventory, debt refinancing, business acquisitions, international trade finance, other business-related financing, and loans syndication services; commercial real estate loans; residential mortgage loans; small business administration loans; and consumer loans, such as single-family mortgage, home equity, automobile, credit card, and personal loans.