State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Has $3.85 Million Holdings in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D increased its stake in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 13.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 40,225 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,863 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $3,852,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in EWBC. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its holdings in East West Bancorp by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 38,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,687,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,537 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $128,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. Lindenwold Advisors INC grew its stake in East West Bancorp by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Lindenwold Advisors INC now owns 7,270 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $602,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in East West Bancorp by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,583 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $343,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE lifted its position in East West Bancorp by 7.8% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,949 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $161,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. 89.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ:EWBC opened at $98.23 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.91. The company has a 50-day moving average of $98.95 and a 200-day moving average of $93.51. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $68.78 and a 52 week high of $113.95. The company has a market capitalization of $13.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.79, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.30.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This is a boost from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.44%. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.81%.

Insider Buying and Selling at East West Bancorp

In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total transaction of $133,275.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,557 shares in the company, valued at $1,521,643.21. This trade represents a 8.05 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on EWBC. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on East West Bancorp from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Barclays lowered their target price on East West Bancorp from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on East West Bancorp from $96.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Stephens downgraded shares of East West Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of East West Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $110.38.

East West Bancorp 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.