Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Sells 2,035 Shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lowered its stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 1.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 173,695 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,035 shares during the period. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $14,372,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of EWBC. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in East West Bancorp by 120.1% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 21,226 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,679,000 after purchasing an additional 11,582 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the 1st quarter valued at $897,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its stake in East West Bancorp by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 6,915 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $547,000 after buying an additional 494 shares during the period. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System lifted its holdings in East West Bancorp by 1.9% during the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 168,659 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $13,343,000 after acquiring an additional 3,176 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL grew its stake in East West Bancorp by 5.4% in the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 3,691 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $292,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on EWBC shares. DA Davidson raised their price target on East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $103.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $97.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wedbush raised their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Compass Point upped their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $93.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $102.25.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

East West Bancorp stock traded up $0.12 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $103.96. 16,005 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 931,584. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a twelve month low of $60.26 and a twelve month high of $107.68. The company has a market cap of $14.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.27. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $88.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $80.94.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.06 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $641.80 million. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 24.96% and a return on equity of 16.07%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.02 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 8.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 4th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.12%. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.78%.

Insider Activity at East West Bancorp

In other East West Bancorp news, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.61, for a total value of $1,279,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 45,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,840,413.83. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.61, for a total value of $1,279,320.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 45,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,840,413.83. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Rudolph Estrada sold 469 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.04, for a total value of $45,980.76. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,740,210. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 25,969 shares of company stock valued at $2,625,276 in the last 90 days. 1.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.