Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Reduces Position in East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank decreased its position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 8.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 665,431 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 58,001 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $74,788,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Seeds Investor LLC increased its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 18.8% in the fourth quarter. Seeds Investor LLC now owns 4,039 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $454,000 after buying an additional 639 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its position in East West Bancorp by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 121,476 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,297,000 after buying an additional 1,434 shares during the period. CWM LLC grew its holdings in East West Bancorp by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 14,954 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,681,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in East West Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth $237,000. Finally, RBA Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. RBA Wealth Management LLC now owns 59,991 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,742,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares during the period. 89.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EWBC opened at $118.02 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $111.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $109.97. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.22 and a 12 month high of $123.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.17 billion, a PE ratio of 12.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.90.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.48 by $0.04. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 28.36% and a return on equity of 15.72%. The firm had revenue of $753.79 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $745.04 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.10 EPS. Equities analysts expect that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 8.85 earnings per share for the current year.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 2nd were given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 2nd. This is a positive change from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently 33.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EWBC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $131.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research lowered East West Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 24th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on East West Bancorp from $141.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price objective on East West Bancorp from $116.00 to $111.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $127.36.

Insider Transactions at East West Bancorp

In other news, EVP Gary Teo sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.59, for a total value of $858,130.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 5,252 shares in the company, valued at $643,842.68. This trade represents a 57.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,421 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.00, for a total value of $169,099.00. Following the sale, the director owned 13,553 shares in the company, valued at $1,612,807. This represents a 9.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 60,221 shares of company stock valued at $7,139,287. Insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

About East West Bancorp

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.