03:55 PM EDT, 04/22/2026 (MT Newswires) -- CFRA, an independent research provider, has provided MT Newswires with the following research alert. Analysts at CFRA have summarized their opinion as follows:

We raise our 12-month target price by $10 to $165, 14.5x our 2027 EPS estimate, a wider risk premium than the peer average of 10.0x given demographic advantages and expected market share gains. We raise our 2026 EPS view by $0.32 to $10.73 and increase 2027's by $0.26 to $11.36. Our revenue estimates are $3.2 billion and $3.4 billion, respectively. EWBC shares justifiably reached a record high today, driven by the bank's continued outperformance in loan and deposit growth versus industry peers. Management's guidance was especially positive and notably was unaffected by the Iran conflict. In fact, EWBC raised its 2026 net interest income outlook by 100 bps to 6%-8% growth, while simultaneously lowering its expected net charge-offs by 5 bps to 15-25 bps. Still, despite strong credit quality and a track record of EPS growth exceeding peers, EWBC maintains a defensive position for a potential economic downturn, supported by robust capital levels and a strengthened loan loss reserve.