Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY Lowers Holdings in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC)

Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY decreased its holdings in East West Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:EWBC) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 632,661 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 7,760 shares during the period. East West Bancorp accounts for about 2.0% of Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY owned approximately 0.46% of East West Bancorp worth $60,584,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in EWBC. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of East West Bancorp during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of East West Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in shares of East West Bancorp by 362.8% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 361 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 283 shares during the last quarter. Tobam grew its holdings in shares of East West Bancorp by 131.7% in the third quarter. Tobam now owns 482 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in East West Bancorp in the third quarter worth $79,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at East West Bancorp

In related news, Director Jack C. Liu sold 1,275 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the director now owns 14,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,521,643.21. The trade was a 8.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas Paul Krause sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.61, for a total value of $1,279,320.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 45,403 shares in the company, valued at $4,840,413.83. This trade represents a 20.90 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 14,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,488,358 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.04% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on EWBC shares. DA Davidson lowered their price objective on shares of East West Bancorp from $120.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Wedbush lifted their price target on East West Bancorp from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on East West Bancorp from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. StockNews.com cut East West Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on East West Bancorp from $96.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, East West Bancorp currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $110.38.

East West Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of EWBC stock opened at $100.23 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $13.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.30. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $100.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $92.74. East West Bancorp, Inc. has a one year low of $68.21 and a one year high of $113.95. 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 Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. This is an increase from East West Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.39%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. East West Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.81%.

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.