East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) Shares Acquired by US Bancorp DE

US Bancorp DE grew its holdings in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 10.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,143 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 194 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $205,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 10.0% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 755,555 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $72,352,000 after buying an additional 68,528 shares during the last quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 123,123 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,790,000 after purchasing an additional 5,424 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at about $228,000. Versor Investments LP purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at about $527,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at about $100,000. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at East West Bancorp

In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,275 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total value of $133,275.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,557 shares in the company, valued at $1,521,643.21. The trade was a 8.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Dominic Ng sold 20,181 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.01, for a total transaction of $1,816,491.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 988,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $88,941,851.33. This represents a 2.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 42,362 shares of company stock valued at $3,842,022. 1.04% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

East West Bancorp Stock Up 3.5 %

Shares of EWBC opened at $87.97 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.18 billion, a PE ratio of 10.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.28. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 1 year low of $68.78 and a 1 year high of $113.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.91. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $96.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $94.80.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.73%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This is a boost from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.81%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EWBC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $127.00 to $118.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $96.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Compass Point increased their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, East West Bancorp presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $111.31.

East West Bancorp Company Profile

East West Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for East West Bank that provides a range of personal and commercial banking services to businesses and individuals in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Consumer and Business Banking, Commercial Banking, and Other.