Wedbush Boosts East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) Price Target to $100.00

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) had its price target upped by Wedbush from $90.00 to $100.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. Wedbush currently has an outperform rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Wedbush also issued estimates for East West Bancorp’s Q3 2024 earnings at $2.06 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $8.20 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $1.99 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $2.09 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $2.20 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $2.21 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $8.50 EPS.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. StockNews.com upgraded East West Bancorp from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $94.00 to $85.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $72.50 to $92.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. 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 presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $88.60.

East West Bancorp Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of East West Bancorp stock opened at $87.97 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The firm has a market cap of $12.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.32. East West Bancorp has a 52-week low of $49.59 and a 52-week high of $88.51. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $74.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $74.33.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $638.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $631.61 million. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 25.40%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.20 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that East West Bancorp will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 2nd. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at East West Bancorp

In other news, insider Irene H. Oh sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.58, for a total value of $775,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 127,193 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,867,632.94. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other East West Bancorp news, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.76, for a total value 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Irene H. Oh sold 10,000 shares of East West Bancorp 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 127,193 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,867,632.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On East West Bancorp

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 19.1% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 122,331 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,448,000 after purchasing an additional 19,627 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates boosted its holdings in East West Bancorp by 23.7% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 432,729 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,135,000 after acquiring an additional 82,872 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its position in East West Bancorp by 13.9% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 5,741 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $413,000 after acquiring an additional 699 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in East West Bancorp by 29.9% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 20,909 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,504,000 after acquiring an additional 4,818 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new position in shares of East West Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.