East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.08 EPS

East West Bancorp (NASDAQ:EWBC) posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.00 by $0.08, RTT News reports. East West Bancorp had a return on equity of 18.47% and a net margin of 29.11%. The company had revenue of $644.13 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $636.77 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.32 EPS. East West Bancorp’s revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

East West Bancorp Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of EWBC stock opened at $75.30 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The company has a market cap of $10.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.39. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $74.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $68.28. East West Bancorp has a 1-year low of $41.12 and a 1-year high of $79.54.

East West Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be given a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.92%. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is 26.89%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $76.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Barclays began coverage on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Friday, March 8th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $106.00 price target for the company. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $90.00 price objective on shares of East West Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday. Compass Point lifted their target price on East West Bancorp from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on East West Bancorp from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and ten have issued 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 $83.75.

Insider Transactions at East West Bancorp

In other East West Bancorp news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.58, for a total transaction of $147,160.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,739 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,231,655.62. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director Molly Campbell sold 1,625 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.26, for a total value of $125,547.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $797,400.46. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Jack C. Liu sold 2,000 shares of East West Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.58, for a total value of $147,160.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 16,739 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,231,655.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

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.