South Dakota Investment Council Has $14.32 Million Position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

South Dakota Investment Council reduced its position in shares of East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 8.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 149,517 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 13,438 shares during the quarter. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $14,318,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in East West Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp in the third quarter worth $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its stake 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 worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake 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 worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 301 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of East West Bancorp in the third quarter worth $79,000. 89.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

East West Bancorp Stock Down 3.3 %

EWBC stock opened at $93.89 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.92. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 52-week low of $68.78 and a 52-week high of $113.95. The company has a 50-day moving average of $98.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $93.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.30.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.56%. This is a boost from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 28.81%.

Insider Buying and Selling at East West Bancorp

In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,275 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.53, for a total value of $133,275.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 14,557 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,521,643.21. This trade represents a 8.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on EWBC shares. Compass Point upped their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of East West Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday. DA Davidson dropped their price target on shares of East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. 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, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, East West Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $110.38.

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.