East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) Announces Earnings Results

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) posted its earnings results on Tuesday. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.00 by $0.08, RTT News reports. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 17.66% and a net margin of 26.78%. The firm had revenue of $644.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $636.77 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.32 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis.

East West Bancorp Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:EWBC traded down $0.71 on Thursday, hitting $76.49. 250,235 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,208,422. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $74.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $68.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The company has a market cap of $10.64 billion, a PE ratio of 9.72, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.39. East West Bancorp has a 52 week low of $41.12 and a 52 week high of $79.54.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be issued a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 2nd. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on EWBC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on East West Bancorp from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Stephens upped their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Compass Point lifted their price objective on East West Bancorp from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on East West Bancorp from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $84.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other East West Bancorp news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.58, for a total value of $147,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 16,739 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,231,655.62. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,625 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.26, for a total value of $125,547.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 10,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $797,400.46. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.58, for a total transaction of $147,160.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 16,739 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,231,655.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.04% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

East West Bancorp Company Profile

East West Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for East West Bank that provides a range of personal and commercial banking services to businesses and individuals in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Consumer and Business Banking, Commercial Banking, and Other.