Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE) Stock Price Passes Above 200-Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

Shares of Hope Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOPE) crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $11.40 and traded as high as $12.76. Hope Bancorp shares last traded at $12.52, with a volume of 917,273 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on HOPE. Zacks Research upgraded Hope Bancorp from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Weiss Ratings upgraded Hope Bancorp from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. DA Davidson increased their target price on Hope Bancorp from $14.50 to $15.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Hope Bancorp from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Brean Capital upgraded Hope Bancorp from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Hope Bancorp presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $14.50.

Hope Bancorp Trading Down 0.9%

The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $11.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.40. The firm has a market cap of $1.59 billion, a PE ratio of 23.87 and a beta of 0.84.

Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.01. Hope Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.32% and a net margin of 6.56%.The business had revenue of $126.69 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $145.30 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.17 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 21.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Hope Bancorp, Inc. will post 1.13 EPS for the current year.

Hope Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th will be issued a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 8th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.5%. Hope Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 107.69%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hope Bancorp news, Director Daisy Y. Ha sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.53, for a total value of $150,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 373,115 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,675,130.95. This trade represents a 3.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.27% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rhino Investment Partners Inc raised its position in shares of Hope Bancorp by 29.8% in the 3rd quarter. Rhino Investment Partners Inc now owns 1,896,501 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $20,425,000 after acquiring an additional 435,165 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its position in shares of Hope Bancorp by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 499,967 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,385,000 after acquiring an additional 67,742 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of Hope Bancorp by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,195,059 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,411,000 after acquiring an additional 188,182 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in shares of Hope Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $788,000. Finally, Everhart Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Hope Bancorp by 15.5% in the 3rd quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 25,067 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $270,000 after acquiring an additional 3,363 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.00% of the company’s stock.

About Hope Bancorp

Hope Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Hope Bank, a California-chartered financial institution serving small and middle-market businesses, professionals and affluent individuals. The company’s principal activities include accepting a variety of deposit products—such as checking accounts, savings and money market accounts, and time deposits—and extending commercial credit facilities. With a focus on community banking, Hope Bancorp tailors its offerings to meet the needs of clients in diverse industries, including real estate, professional services and import/export trade.

In its lending business, Hope Bancorp provides commercial real estate loans, construction financing, working capital lines of credit and equipment financing.