Intech Investment Management LLC Has $6.33 Million Holdings in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 88.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 66,144 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 31,068 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in East West Bancorp were worth $6,334,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its position in East West Bancorp by 10.8% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 6,486 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $621,000 after buying an additional 630 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd raised its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 1,178.1% in the fourth quarter. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd now owns 10,225 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $979,000 after purchasing an additional 9,425 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 11,777 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,128,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH boosted its holdings in East West Bancorp by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 28,429 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,749,000 after purchasing an additional 1,846 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swiss National Bank grew its position in East West Bancorp by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 272,600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,104,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

East West Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of EWBC stock opened at $88.19 on Wednesday. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $68.78 and a 52 week high of $113.95. The company has a market capitalization of $12.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.59, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $96.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $94.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.91.

East West Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 17th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 2.72%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This is a boost from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. East West Bancorp’s payout ratio is currently 28.81%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EWBC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Stephens downgraded shares of East West Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Barclays dropped their target price on East West Bancorp from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. DA Davidson decreased their price target on East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group started coverage on East West Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $112.00 price target on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com raised East West Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $111.31.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,275 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 14,557 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,521,643.21. This represents a 8.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Dominic Ng sold 20,181 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 988,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $88,941,851.33. This represents a 2.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 42,362 shares of company stock valued at $3,842,022. 1.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

East West Bancorp 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.