Insider Selling: East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) CEO Sells $4,621,161.24 in Stock

East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) CEO Dominic Ng sold 34,977 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.12, for a total value of $4,621,161.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 672,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $88,910,550.36. The trade was a 4.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:EWBC opened at $130.68 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $128.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $123.63. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 1 year low of $98.72 and a 1 year high of $137.47. The company has a market capitalization of $17.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.99.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The financial services provider reported $2.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.72 by $0.04. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.07% and a net margin of 30.75%. The firm had revenue of $822.72 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $811.07 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.65 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.74 earnings per share for the current year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 17th. Investors of record on Monday, November 2nd will be issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 2nd. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.45%.

Trending Headlines about East West Bancorp

Here are a few of the latest headlines about EWBC:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised earnings forecasts. Zacks Research lifted estimates across several quarters and fiscal years, including FY2026 to $10.73 per share, FY2027 to $11.32, and FY2028 to $12.14. Higher projections suggest improved expectations for future earnings. East West Bancorp coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Hovde Group initiated coverage with an “outperform” rating and a $153 price target, adding another favorable analyst endorsement. Hovde Group rating article
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Dominic Ng sold 34,977 shares for about $4.62 million, reducing his direct ownership by 4.94%. He still held 672,953 shares after the transaction, which may temper concerns about the sale. CEO share sale report

Institutional Trading of East West Bancorp

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mather Group LLC. grew its holdings in East West Bancorp by 22.4% during the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 442 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 5.0% in the third quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,812 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $225,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 13.9% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 720 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $89,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Marathon Mission Inc. boosted its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 3.8% in the second quarter. Marathon Mission Inc. now owns 2,566 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $331,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 3.4% in the second quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,967 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $383,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $164.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of East West Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $145.71.

East West Bancorp Company Profile

East West Bancorp, Inc. is the holding company for East West Bank, a commercial bank headquartered in Pasadena, California. Founded in 1973, the bank initially served Chinese American communities in Southern California and has since expanded its services and geographic reach. East West Bank provides personal and business banking, commercial lending, trade finance, treasury management and other financial services. Its customers include individuals, small and midsize businesses, and larger companies, with a focus on supporting commerce between the United States and Asia.