Truist Financial Boosts East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) Price Target to $96.00

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) had its price target increased by Truist Financial from $80.00 to $96.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. Truist Financial currently has a buy rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on EWBC. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Barclays dropped their target price on East West Bancorp from $106.00 to $105.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Stephens upped their price target on East West Bancorp from $86.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price target on East West Bancorp from $72.50 to $92.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $88.60.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of EWBC opened at $87.01 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The firm has a market cap of $12.11 billion, a PE ratio of 10.96, a P/E/G ratio of 5.07 and a beta of 1.32. East West Bancorp has a 12 month low of $49.59 and a 12 month high of $88.16. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $74.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $74.21.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.10. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 25.40%. The business had revenue of $638.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $631.61 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.20 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that East West Bancorp will post 8.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 2nd. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is 27.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at East West Bancorp

In other news, insider Irene H. Oh sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.58, for a total transaction of $775,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 127,193 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,867,632.94. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, insider Irene H. Oh sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.58, for a total value of $775,800.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 127,193 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,867,632.94. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.76, for a total transaction of $590,080.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 57,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,234,045.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On East West Bancorp

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in EWBC. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in East West Bancorp during the first quarter worth $25,000. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the first quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Mather Group LLC. acquired a new stake in East West Bancorp during the first quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

About East West Bancorp

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.