East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) recently saw an increase in its position from 180 Wealth Advisors LLC, as reported in its second-quarter filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The financial services provider’s stock holdings were boosted by 30.8%, with an additional 3,268 shares acquired during the period. At the end of the quarter, the fund owned a total of 13,889 shares of East West Bancorp, worth $742,000.
These developments come after East West Bancorp released its quarterly earnings results on July 20th. The company reported earnings per share of $2.20 for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates. East West Bancorp showed a return on equity of 20.86% and a net margin of 37.14%. Despite falling short of analysts’ expectations for revenue – reporting $645.00 million compared to an estimated $660.49 million – the company’s revenue increased by 17.1% year-over-year during that period. In the same quarter last year, East West Bancorp posted $1.81 EPS.
Various research analysts have recently given their opinions on East West Bancorp’s stock performance and prospects. Truist Financial lowered their price objective from $64.00 to $62.00 in a research report published on June 29th, while Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $56.00 price objective on July 24th.
In contrast to these opinions, StockNews.com downgraded East West Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating on September 19th and maintained this viewpoint with a recent report by 92 Resources. However, Wedbush was optimistic about the company’s potential and raised their price objective from $55.00 to $65.00, giving it a “neutral” rating in their July 21st report.
Overall, the average rating for East West Bancorp, according to Bloomberg.com, is “Hold” with an average target price of $68.86. It remains to be seen how these ratings and the recent increase in position by 180 Wealth Advisors LLC will impact the future performance of East West Bancorp. Investors will be closely monitoring any updates from the company and its next earnings release to make informed decisions about their investments.
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Analysis of Hedge Fund and Institutional Investor Activity in East West Bancorp
East West Bancorp, a financial services provider, has been the subject of recent activity from hedge funds and institutional investors. Several hedge funds have bought and sold shares of the company, indicating varying levels of interest and confidence in its performance.
Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. recently acquired a new stake in East West Bancorp during the second quarter, amounting to approximately $43,000. Similarly, Paragon Capital Management Ltd also acquired a new stake in the company during the same period, with a value of $265,000. SG Americas Securities LLC saw a significant increase in its position in East West Bancorp by 146.4% during the second quarter, now owning 51,700 shares worth $2.7 million. DNB Asset Management AS and Nordea Investment Management AB also raised their stakes in East West Bancorp during the second quarter.
Currently, around 87.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors, suggesting that there is considerable interest from this segment of the market. This level of ownership can have an impact on the direction and stability of a company’s stock price.
East West Bancorp’s stock opened at $54.11 on Tuesday with a market capitalization of $7.66 billion. It boasts a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.07 and a P/E/G ratio of 0.65, indicating that it may be undervalued compared to its growth potential. The stock has experienced fluctuations over time, with its 50-day moving average standing at $57.05 and its two-hundred day moving average at $54.51.
The financial health of East West Bancorp appears sound with a current ratio and quick ratio both standing at 0.91 – suggesting that it has sufficient short-term assets to cover its liabilities effectively. Additionally, its debt-to-equity ratio is low at 0.02.
As for analyst opinions on the stock, Truist Financial and Morgan Stanley have recently commented on East West Bancorp. Truist Financial lowered their price objective from $64.00 to $62.00, while Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $56.00 price objective for the stock. One equities research analyst has given the stock a sell rating, three assigned it a hold rating, and three gave it a buy rating.
The business also announced a quarterly dividend in August, with shareholders of record on August 1st receiving a $0.48 dividend. The annualized dividend payout ratio stood at 21.52%, providing investors with a dividend yield of 3.55%.
In recent news, Director Rudolph Estrada sold 2,411 shares of East West Bancorp’s stock at an average price of $55.96 per share, totaling approximately $134,919.56. Following this transaction, Estrada now holds 18,548 shares in the company valued at around $1,037,946.08.
Considering all these factors and recent developments within East West Bancorp’s financial landscape, investors may find it beneficial to conduct further research and analysis before making any investment decisions regarding the company’s stock.
This article was written based on information available as of September 19th, 2023.
