Retirement Systems of Alabama Trims Stock Holdings in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

Retirement Systems of Alabama decreased its stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 0.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 408,352 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 151 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned approximately 0.29% of East West Bancorp worth $29,381,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Denali Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 66.7% during the fourth quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 65.1% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 535 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares in the last quarter. Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 1,050.0% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 667 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $78,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at East West Bancorp

In related news, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,625 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.26, for a total transaction of $125,547.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,321 shares in the company, valued at approximately $797,400.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.58, for a total transaction of $147,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 16,739 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,231,655.62. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,625 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.26, for a total value of $125,547.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 10,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $797,400.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on EWBC. Piper Sandler increased their target price on East West Bancorp from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Stephens raised their price target on East West Bancorp from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Barclays started coverage on East West Bancorp in a report on Friday, March 8th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $106.00 price target for the company. Truist Financial cut their price target on East West Bancorp from $90.00 to $86.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on East West Bancorp from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $84.08.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ:EWBC opened at $75.98 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.57, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.39. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 1 year low of $41.12 and a 1 year high of $79.54. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $74.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $68.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.93.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.00 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $644.13 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $636.77 million. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 17.43% and a net margin of 26.78%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.32 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 7.99 EPS for the current year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Investors of record on Friday, May 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.90%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 2nd. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is currently 27.71%.

East West Bancorp 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.