Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Downgrades East West Bancorp (EWBC) to Market Perform; Key Franchise with Good Fundamentals, but Cut on Valuation

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded East West Bancorp (NASDAQ: EWBC) from Outperform to Market Perform, price target raised of $21.00.

KBW analyst said, "4Q11 was a good quarter, EWBC is able to generate core loan growth, and will be managing its capital more actively in 2012. EWBC's improved valuation reflects the quality of the fundamentals. But, increased earnings are limited not only by interest income pressures but also hampered in the medium term by the run-off of covered loan. Consequently we are downgrading the shares to MP."

For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on East West Bancorp click here. For more ratings news on East West Bancorp click here.

Shares of East West Bancorp closed at $22.02 yesterday, with a 52 week range of $13.94-$23.79.

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