Manning & Napier Advisors LLC Makes New $2.94 Million Investment in East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 22,740 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,936,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of EWBC. Solstein Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new position in shares of East West Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors bought a new position in East West Bancorp during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in East West Bancorp during the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in East West Bancorp during the second quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Institutional investors own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $128.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Stephens boosted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $129.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $128.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised East West Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $141.92.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ EWBC opened at $129.43 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $131.30 and its 200-day moving average is $122.20. 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 12-month low of $92.67 and a 12-month high of $137.47. The company has a market capitalization of $17.73 billion, a PE ratio of 12.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.94.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.63 EPS 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 the consensus estimate of $784.47 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.24 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other East West Bancorp news, insider Irene H. Oh sold 11,211 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.00, for a total transaction of $1,446,219.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 85,998 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,093,742. This trade represents a 11.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 10,000 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.37, for a total transaction of $1,323,700.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 36,974 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,894,248.38. This trade represents a 21.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 23,511 shares of company stock valued at $3,077,741. 0.94% of the stock is owned by 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.