Stieven Capital Advisors L.P. Has $22.78 Million Holdings in East West Bancorp, Inc. $EWBC

Stieven Capital Advisors L.P. trimmed its stake in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 3.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 202,724 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 6,500 shares during the quarter. East West Bancorp accounts for about 4.2% of Stieven Capital Advisors L.P.’s holdings, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Stieven Capital Advisors L.P.’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $22,784,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 115.0% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 344 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 44.7% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 366 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares during the period. 89.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

East West Bancorp Trading Up 0.1%

EWBC opened at $123.12 on Friday. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a twelve month low of $88.26 and a twelve month high of $127.51. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $115.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $113.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.97.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.46 by $0.11. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 29.59% and a return on equity of 16.00%. The business had revenue of $773.75 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $767.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.08 earnings per share. East West Bancorp’s revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that East West Bancorp, Inc. will post 10.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 18th. Investors of record on Monday, May 4th were given a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 4th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.97%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on EWBC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $131.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $111.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $133.00 target price on shares of East West Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, East West Bancorp currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $133.69.

Insider Activity

In other East West Bancorp news, CEO Dominic Ng sold 30,000 shares of the business’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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 707,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $87,422,275.70. The trade was a 4.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Archana Deskus sold 1,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.55, for a total value of $225,990.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 13,231 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,661,152.05. The trade was a 11.98% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.94% of the stock is currently 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.