East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.27 EPS

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The financial services provider reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.35 by $0.27, Zacks reports. The company had revenue of $778.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $722.75 million. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 15.09% and a net margin of 26.06%.East West Bancorp’s revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.14 earnings per share.

East West Bancorp Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ EWBC opened at $98.81 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The company has a market cap of $13.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.93. East West Bancorp has a 52 week low of $68.27 and a 52 week high of $113.95. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $104.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $97.62.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Cowen initiated coverage on East West Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. DA Davidson raised their target price on East West Bancorp from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, TD Cowen initiated coverage on East West Bancorp in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $139.00 target price for the company. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $121.33.

Insider Activity

In other East West Bancorp news, CEO Dominic Ng sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.38, for a total value of $4,135,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 888,314 shares in the company, valued at $91,833,901.32. This represents a 4.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Irene H. Oh sold 7,639 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.40, for a total transaction of $835,706.60. Following the transaction, the insider owned 105,714 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,565,111.60. This trade represents a 6.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 70,240 shares of company stock valued at $7,379,678. Corporate insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On East West Bancorp

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EWBC. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in East West Bancorp by 66.9% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 801 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 321 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. bought a new stake in East West Bancorp during the second quarter valued at $86,000. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in East West Bancorp during the second quarter valued at $142,000. Evergreen Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in East West Bancorp during the second quarter valued at $205,000. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in East West Bancorp during the second quarter valued at $266,000. Institutional investors own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

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.