UBS Group Initiates Coverage on East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC)

Research analysts at UBS Group started coverage on shares of East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage set a “neutral” rating and a $112.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock. UBS Group’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 17.77% from the stock’s current price.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on East West Bancorp from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $96.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. StockNews.com raised shares of East West Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Wedbush lifted their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $107.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, East West Bancorp presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $109.38.

East West Bancorp Trading Down 5.1 %

NASDAQ EWBC opened at $95.10 on Tuesday. East West Bancorp has a 52 week low of $67.27 and a 52 week high of $113.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $100.88 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $86.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.01, a PEG ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 1.28.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.06 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $641.80 million. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 24.96% and a return on equity of 16.07%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.02 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that East West Bancorp will post 8.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Rudolph Estrada sold 469 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.04, for a total transaction of $45,980.76. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,740,210. This represents a 2.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.65, for a total value of $147,975.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,639 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,049,537.35. This trade represents a 12.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 23,969 shares of company stock valued at $2,458,276. 1.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On East West Bancorp

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in shares of East West Bancorp by 362.8% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 361 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares during the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Finally, American Capital Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. 89.53% of the stock is owned by 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.