Stephens Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) Stock

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) had its price target increased by equities researchers at Stephens from $120.00 to $125.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “equal weight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Stephens’ price target would indicate a potential upside of 11.43% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $126.00 target price on shares of East West Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $133.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of East West Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded East West Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 24th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, East West Bancorp presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $128.29.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EWBC opened at $112.18 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $111.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $106.83. East West Bancorp has a 1-year low of $68.27 and a 1-year high of $119.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.88.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.52 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $754.92 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $745.04 million. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 28.36% and a return on equity of 15.72%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.10 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that East West Bancorp will post 8.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at East West Bancorp

In other news, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,520 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.73, for a total transaction of $159,189.60. Following the sale, the director directly owned 7,556 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $791,339.88. This represents a 16.75% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.04, for a total transaction of $1,000,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 45,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,551,820. This trade represents a 18.02% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 73,344 shares of company stock valued at $8,184,226 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EWBC. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 38.5% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 10,683,377 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,078,807,000 after purchasing an additional 2,968,716 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $174,431,000. Boston Partners increased its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 39.6% during the second quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,241,088 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $327,271,000 after purchasing an additional 920,159 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 448.5% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 840,371 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $84,861,000 after buying an additional 687,145 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in East West Bancorp by 61.9% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,418,174 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $143,207,000 after purchasing an additional 542,149 shares in the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.