Wedbush Reaffirms Outperform Rating for East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC)

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reaffirmed by stock analysts at Wedbush in a report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $90.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock. Wedbush’s price target suggests a potential upside of 19.52% from the company’s current price.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $76.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $85.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Compass Point boosted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $83.75.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

EWBC stock opened at $75.30 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. East West Bancorp has a 52-week low of $41.12 and a 52-week high of $79.54. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $74.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $68.28.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.13. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 29.11% and a return on equity of 18.47%. The firm had revenue of $654.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $641.91 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.37 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that East West Bancorp will post 7.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,625 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.26, for a total value of $125,547.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $797,400.46. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the firm’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 value of $147,160.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,739 shares in the company, valued at $1,231,655.62. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,625 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.26, for a total transaction of $125,547.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,321 shares in the company, valued at $797,400.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On East West Bancorp

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in East West Bancorp during the first quarter valued at $25,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 65.1% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 535 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 211 shares in the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new position in shares of East West Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of East West Bancorp in the first quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Mather Group LLC. acquired a new stake in East West Bancorp during the first quarter worth about $35,000. 89.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.