East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) Short Interest Up 17.7% in July

East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,720,000 shares, a growth of 17.7% from the July 15th total of 4,010,000 shares. Approximately 3.4% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 771,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.1 days.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Rudolph Estrada sold 1,896 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.77, for a total value of $166,411.92. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 18,470 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,621,111.90. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Rudolph Estrada sold 1,896 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.77, for a total transaction of $166,411.92. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 18,470 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,621,111.90. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Gary Teo sold 3,450 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.73, for a total transaction of $302,668.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,875 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,392,713.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 19,346 shares of company stock valued at $1,531,240 over the last three months. Insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On East West Bancorp

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in EWBC. Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in East West Bancorp in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in East West Bancorp in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new stake in East West Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. purchased a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the second quarter valued at about $30,000. 89.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:EWBC traded up $0.79 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $80.94. 540,668 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,005,089. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $76.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $75.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. East West Bancorp has a one year low of $49.59 and a one year high of $89.75. The firm has a market cap of $11.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.32.

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $638.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $631.61 million. East West Bancorp had a net margin of 25.40% and a return on equity of 16.64%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.20 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that East West Bancorp will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

East West Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were paid a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.72%. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently 27.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $94.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of East West Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $72.50 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Stephens raised their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $86.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, DA Davidson increased their target price on East West Bancorp from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.53.

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.