Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC trimmed its position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 7.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 72,736 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 5,669 shares during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $6,965,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in East West Bancorp by 73.2% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 414 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in East West Bancorp by 119.1% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 563 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in East West Bancorp by 83.4% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 662 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 301 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP increased its position in East West Bancorp by 822.9% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,006 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $83,000 after purchasing an additional 897 shares during the period. 89.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EWBC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Stephens downgraded East West Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of East West Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Compass Point increased their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, DA Davidson dropped their price target on East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $111.31.

Insider Activity at East West Bancorp

In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 725 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.50, for a total transaction of $75,762.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 15,832 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,654,444. This trade represents a 4.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Dominic Ng sold 20,181 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.01, for a total value of $1,816,491.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 988,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $88,941,851.33. This represents a 2.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 62,181 shares of company stock worth $5,625,732. Corporate insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

East West Bancorp Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of EWBC stock opened at $89.76 on Tuesday. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $68.78 and a fifty-two week high of $113.95. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $95.12 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $95.62. The stock has a market cap of $12.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.67%. This is a boost from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 28.81%.

About East West Bancorp

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.