Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE) Hits New 52-Week Low – What’s Next?

Hope Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOPE) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $9.64 and last traded at $9.64, with a volume of 1979467 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $10.51.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HOPE has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Hope Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Hope Bancorp from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, DA Davidson dropped their price objective on shares of Hope Bancorp from $15.50 to $14.50 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hope Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $12.88.

Hope Bancorp Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.97. The company has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.41 and a beta of 1.15. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $10.90 and its 200 day moving average price is $12.12.

Hope Bancorp (NASDAQ:HOPE) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.17 by $0.03. Hope Bancorp had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 4.84%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hope Bancorp, Inc. will post 1.09 EPS for the current year.

Hope Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 6th were given a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 6th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.98%. Hope Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 68.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hope Bancorp news, EVP Thomas Stenger sold 4,185 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.83, for a total transaction of $49,508.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 19,267 shares in the company, valued at approximately $227,928.61. This represents a 17.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 5.29% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hope Bancorp

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its position in Hope Bancorp by 31.2% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 3,563 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 848 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Hope Bancorp by 8.5% in the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 11,729 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $147,000 after purchasing an additional 919 shares during the period. Cresset Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hope Bancorp by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 118,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,459,000 after purchasing an additional 977 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in Hope Bancorp by 181.9% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,407 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 1,553 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in Hope Bancorp by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 339,560 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,173,000 after acquiring an additional 1,560 shares during the period. 84.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Hope Bancorp

Hope Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Bank of Hope that provides retail and commercial banking services for businesses and individuals in the United States. It accepts personal and business checking, money market, savings, time deposit, and individual retirement accounts. The company also offers loans comprising commercial and industrial loans to businesses for various purposes, such as working capital, purchasing inventory, debt refinancing, business acquisitions, international trade finance, other business-related financing, and loans syndication services; commercial real estate loans; residential mortgage loans; small business administration loans; and consumer loans, such as single-family mortgage, home equity, automobile, credit card, and personal loans.