Trillium Asset Management LLC Lowers Stake in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

Trillium Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 5.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 252,266 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 13,999 shares during the quarter. Trillium Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.18% of East West Bancorp worth $24,157,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in EWBC. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 73.2% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 414 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 306 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 83.4% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 662 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 301 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp in the third quarter valued at about $79,000. 89.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at East West Bancorp

In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 725 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.50, for a total value of $75,762.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 15,832 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,654,444. This represents a 4.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Dominic Ng sold 20,181 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.01, for a total transaction of $1,816,491.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 988,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $88,941,851.33. This trade represents a 2.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 42,362 shares of company stock valued at $3,842,022 in the last three months. 1.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of East West Bancorp stock opened at $88.19 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.59, a PEG 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. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $96.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $94.95. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $68.78 and a 52 week high of $113.95.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a $0.60 dividend. This is a positive change from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.72%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.81%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded East West Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Compass Point lifted their price objective on East West Bancorp from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of East West Bancorp from $96.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Stephens downgraded shares of East West Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $111.31.

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.