The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Makes New $36.99 Million Investment in East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 286,585 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $36,995,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 66.9% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 801 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in East West Bancorp during the second quarter worth about $274,000. Baird Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in East West Bancorp during the second quarter worth about $290,000. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 34.3% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,223 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $325,000 after acquiring an additional 823 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 118.7% in the second quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 35,335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,568,000 after acquiring an additional 19,178 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

East West Bancorp Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of EWBC opened at $130.43 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $131.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $122.29. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 12 month low of $92.67 and a 12 month high of $137.47. The company has a market capitalization of $17.87 billion, a PE ratio of 12.54, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.61 by $0.02. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.07% and a net margin of 30.45%.The company had revenue of $789.98 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $784.47 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.24 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.61 EPS for the current year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EWBC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Barclays raised their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $128.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Monday, August 10th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $155.00 price target for the company. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on East West Bancorp from $128.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $141.92.

Insider Buying and Selling at East West Bancorp

In other news, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.37, for a total value of $1,323,700.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 36,974 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,894,248.38. This represents a 21.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Irene H. Oh sold 800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.19, for a total transaction of $106,552.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 84,698 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,280,926.62. This represents a 0.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 23,511 shares of company stock valued at $3,077,741. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

East West Bancorp Company Profile

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.