Entropy Technologies LP Purchases Shares of 34,006 East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 34,006 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,630,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in EWBC. Quarry LP boosted its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 35.4% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 390 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its position in East West Bancorp by 1.8% in the third quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 5,674 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $604,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT lifted its stake in East West Bancorp by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT now owns 9,195 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,033,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd lifted its stake in East West Bancorp by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 6,404 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $720,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 44.7% during the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 366 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 113 shares during the period. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of EWBC stock opened at $131.00 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $128.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $119.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.95 billion, a PE ratio of 12.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $92.67 and a 52 week high of $136.24.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $791.14 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $784.47 million. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.07% and a net margin of 30.45%.The company’s revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.24 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 17th. Investors of record on Monday, August 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 3rd. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently 30.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other East West Bancorp news, CEO Dominic Ng sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.49, for a total transaction of $3,704,700.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 707,930 shares in the company, valued at $87,422,275.70. This represents a 4.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Irene H. Oh sold 11,211 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.00, for a total value of $1,446,219.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 85,998 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,093,742. This trade represents a 11.53% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 54,311 shares of company stock valued at $6,784,711. Company insiders own 0.94% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on EWBC. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays increased their target price on East West Bancorp from $142.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Friday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on East West Bancorp from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Stephens boosted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $129.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.23.

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.