EWBC - East West Bancorp Reports Net Income for First Quarter of 2024 of $285 Million and Diluted Earnings Per Share of $2.03

East West Bancorp, Inc. (“East West” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq: EWBC), parent company of East West Bank, reported its financial results for the first quarter of 2024. First quarter 2024 net income was $285 million, or $2.03 per diluted share. Excluding a $10 million pre-tax Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) Special Assessment-related charge (the “FDIC charge”) ¹ , adjusted diluted earnings per share ² for the quarter were $2.08, up 3% from the fourth quarter of 2023. Total deposits reached a record $58.6 billion as of March 31, 2024. Return on average common equity was 16%, return on average tangible common equity ³ was 18%, and book value per share grew 13% year-over-year.

“This quarter we grew deposits by $2.5 billion to a new record level and optimized funding to support prudent asset growth,” said Dominic Ng, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “East West grew adjusted diluted earnings per share 3% and tangible book value per share ³ 2% quarter-over-quarter. With continued confidence in our earnings generation, stable credit quality, and capital strength, we were pleased to repurchase 1.2 million shares of common stock,” continued Ng. “Through the strength of our diversified business model, conservatively managed balance sheet, and industry-leading profitability, East West remains well-positioned to outperform the industry in 2024 and beyond.”

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

BALANCE SHEET

• Assets – Total assets were $70.9 billion as of March 31, 2024, an increase of $1.3 billion from $69.6 billion as of December 31, 2023, primarily reflecting a $2.2 billion increase in AFS debt securities mainly funded by a $2.5 billion increase in deposits; partly offset by decreases in cash and cash equivalents, assets purchased under resale agreements, and other items. Year-over-year, total assets grew $3.6 billion, or 5%, from $67.2 billion as of March 31, 2023.
  
  First quarter 2024 average interest-earning assets of $68.1 billion were up $2.6 billion, or 4%, from $65.5 billion in the fourth quarter of 2023, reflecting increases of $1.4 billion in average cash and deposits with banks, $0.7 billion in average loans outstanding, and $0.6 billion in average AFS debt securities holdings.
  

• Loans – Total loans were $52.0 billion as of March 31, 2024, a decrease of $0.2 billion from $52.2 billion as of December 31, 2023. Year-over-year, total loans were up $3.1 billion, or 6%, from $48.9 billion as of March 31, 2023.
  
  First quarter 2024 average loans of $51.9 billion grew $0.7 billion, or 1%, from the fourth quarter of 2023. The increase was driven by growth across our single-family residential and C&I loan portfolios.
  

• Deposits – Total deposits were $58.6 billion as of March 31, 2024, an increase of $2.5 billion, or 4%, from $56.1 billion as of December 31, 2023, primarily reflecting an increase in customer deposits related to a successful branch-based CD campaign for the Lunar New Year. Noninterest-bearing deposits made up 25% of our total deposits as of March 31, 2024, down from 28% as of December 31, 2023. Year-over-year, total deposits increased $3.8 billion from $54.7 billion as of March 31, 2023.
  
  First quarter 2024 average deposits of $57.4 billion increased $2.0 billion from the fourth quarter of 2023, with growth in average time, money market, and interest-bearing checking deposits offset by declines in other categories.
  

• Borrowings – Total borrowings and long-term debt were $3.6 billion as of March 31, 2024, a decrease of $1.1 billion, or 24%, from $4.7 billion as of December 31, 2023. The decrease was driven by the payoff of $4.5 billion in Bank Term Funding Program borrowings and a $117 million decrease in long-term debt and finance lease liabilities due to the redemption of East West Capital Trust securities, partially offset by a $3.5 billion increase in Federal Home Loan Bank advances.
  

• Capital – As of March 31, 2024, stockholders’ equity was $7.0 billion, up 1% quarter-over-quarter. The stockholders’ equity to asset ratio was 9.91% as of March 31, 2024, compared with 9.98% as of December 31, 2023.
  
  Book value per share was $50.48 as of March 31, 2024, up 2% quarter-over-quarter and 13% year-over-year. As of March 31, 2024, tangible book value per share ⁵ was $47.09, up 2% quarter-over-quarter and 14% year-over-year. The tangible common equity ratio ⁵ was 9.31%, compared with 9.37% as of December 31, 2023.
  
  All of East West’s regulatory capital ratios are well in excess of regulatory requirements for well-capitalized institutions, and well above regional bank averages. The common equity tier 1 (“CET1”) capital ratio increased to 13.53%, and the total risk-based capital ratio increased by eight basis points to 14.84%, as of March 31, 2024.

OPERATING RESULTS

First Quarter Earnings – First quarter 2024 net income was $285 million, and diluted earnings per share (“EPS”) were $2.03. Excluding $10 million pre-tax for the FDIC charge in the first quarter of 2024 and a $70 million pre-tax FDIC charge and $3 million of losses on an AFS debt security in the fourth quarter of 2023, adjusted net income ⁶ was $292 million and adjusted diluted earnings per share were $2.08, up 2% and 3% quarter-over-quarter, respectively.

First Quarter 2024 Compared to Fourth Quarter 2023

Net Interest Income and Net Interest Margin

Net interest income totaled $565 million in the first quarter, a decrease of 2% from $575 million in the fourth quarter of 2023. Net interest margin (“NIM”) was 3.34%, a 14 basis point decline from the fourth quarter.

• NIM declined primarily due to a higher cost of interest-bearing deposits and continued deposit mix shift, partly offset by higher asset yields and balances.
• The average loan yield was 6.71%, up 10 basis points from the fourth quarter. The average interest-earning asset yield was 6.04%, up four basis points from the fourth quarter.
• The average cost of funds was 2.97%, up 23 basis points from the fourth quarter. The average cost of deposits was 2.84%, up 24 basis points from the fourth quarter.

Noninterest Income

Noninterest income totaled $79 million in the first quarter, a decrease of $1 million, or 1%, from $80 million in the fourth quarter. Mark-to-market and credit valuation adjustments on customer and other derivatives was a gain of $1 million in the first quarter, compared with a loss of $7 million in the fourth quarter. Other investment income increased $1 million quarter-over-quarter.

• Fee income ⁷ of $71 million was down $2 million, or 3%, from $73 million in the fourth quarter.
• Deposit fees, lending fees, and wealth management fees each increased by approximately $1 million quarter-over-quarter.
• The above increases were offset by a $3 million decrease in customer derivative revenue, reflecting lower customer activity.
• Foreign exchange income decreased $2 million in the first quarter, primarily reflecting an unfavorable change in mark-to-market adjustments on FX positions.

Noninterest Expense

Noninterest expense totaled $247 million in the first quarter, a decrease of $44 million, or 15% from $290 million in the fourth quarter, which includes $10 million and $70 million, respectively, for the FDIC charge. First quarter noninterest expense consisted of $223 million of adjusted noninterest expense ⁸ , and $13 million in amortization expenses related to tax credit and other investments.

• Adjusted noninterest expense of $223 million increased nearly $8 million, or 4%, from $215 million in the fourth quarter. This was driven primarily by a seasonal first quarter $11 million increase in compensation and employee benefits, reflecting higher payroll taxes and an increase in compensation, partly offset by a $5 million decrease in other operating expense, primarily reflecting lower legal expense and realized credit card fraud losses in the first quarter.
• Amortization of tax credit and other investments was $13 million in the first quarter, up $9 million from the fourth quarter. The increase was due to the sale of a tax credit investment and the timing of certain renewable energy tax credit investments that were not placed into service in the fourth quarter.
• The efficiency ratio was 38.3% in the first quarter, compared with 44.4% in the fourth quarter and the adjusted efficiency ratio ⁸ was 34.7% in the first quarter, compared with 33.1% in the fourth quarter.

TAX RELATED ITEMS

First quarter 2024 income tax expense was $87 million, and the effective tax rate was 23.4%, compared with income tax expense of $88 million and 27.0% for the fourth quarter of 2023. The lower effective tax rate in the first quarter was primarily due to the sale of a tax credit investment in the fourth quarter and the timing of certain renewable energy tax credit investments that are expected to be placed into service in 2024.

ASSET QUALITY

As of March 31, 2024, the credit quality of our loan portfolio remained solid.

• The criticized loans ratio increased 43 basis points quarter-over-quarter to 2.30% of loans held-for-investment (“HFI”) as of March 31, 2024, compared with 1.87% as of December 31, 2023. Criticized loans increased $217 million quarter-over-quarter to $1.2 billion as of March 31, 2024. The special mention loans ratio increased 28 basis points quarter-over-quarter to 1.05% of loans HFI as of March 31, 2024, compared with 0.77% as of December 31, 2023, and the classified loans ratio increased 15 basis points to 1.25%.
• Nonperforming assets increased $51 million to $165 million as of March 31, 2024, from $114 million as of December 31, 2023. The nonperforming assets ratio was 0.23% of total assets as of March 31, 2024, compared with 0.16% of total assets as of December 31, 2023. The quarter-over-quarter change reflects increases across commercial real estate, consumer, and C&I asset types.
• First quarter 2023 net charge-offs were $23 million, or annualized 0.17% of average loans HFI, compared with $20 million, or annualized 0.15% of average loans HFI, for the fourth quarter of 2023.
• The allowance for loan losses increased to $670 million, or 1.29% of loans HFI, as of March 31, 2024, compared with $669 million, or 1.28% of loans HFI, as of December 31, 2023.
• First quarter 2024 provision for credit losses was $25 million, compared with $37 million in the fourth quarter of 2023.

CAPITAL STRENGTH

Capital levels for East West remained strong as of March 31, 2024. The following table presents capital metrics as of March 31, 2024, December 31, 2023 and March 31, 2023.

DIVIDEND PAYOUT AND CAPITAL ACTIONS

East West’s Board of Directors has declared second quarter 2024 dividends for the Company’s common stock. The common stock cash dividend of $0.55 per share is payable on May 17, 2024, to stockholders of record as of May 3, 2024.

East West repurchased 1.2 million shares of common stock during the first quarter of 2024 for approximately $82 million. $89 million of East West’s share repurchase authorization remains available.

Conference Call

East West will host a conference call to discuss first quarter 2024 earnings with the public on Tuesday, April 23, 2024, at 2:00 p.m. PT/5:00 p.m. ET. The public and investment community are invited to listen as management discusses first quarter 2024 results and operating developments.

• The following dial-in information is provided for participation in the conference call: calls within the U.S. – (877) 506-6399; calls within Canada – (855) 669-9657; international calls – (412) 902-6699.
• A presentation to accompany the earnings call, a listen-only live broadcast of the call, and information to access a replay one hour after the call will all be available on the Investor Relations page of the Company’s website at www.eastwestbank.com/investors .

About East West

East West provides financial services that help customers reach further and connect to new opportunities. East West Bancorp, Inc. is a public company (Nasdaq: “EWBC”) with total assets of $70.9 billion as of March 31, 2024. The Company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, East West Bank, is the largest independent bank headquartered in Southern California, and operates 120 locations in the United States and Asia. The Bank’s markets in the United States include California, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Nevada, New York, Texas, and Washington. For more information on East West, visit www.eastwestbank.com .

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain matters set forth herein (including any exhibits hereto) contain “forward-looking statements” that are intended to be covered by the safe harbor for such statements provided by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. East West Bancorp, Inc. (referred to herein on an unconsolidated basis as “East West” and on a consolidated basis as the “Company,” “we,” “us,” “our” or “EWBC”) may make forward-looking statements in other documents that it files with, or furnishes to, the United States (“U.S.”) Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and management may make forward-looking statements to analysts, investors, media members and others. Forward-looking statements are those that do not relate to historical facts and that are based on current assumptions, beliefs, estimates, expectations and projections, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and beyond the Company’s control. Forward-looking statements may relate to various matters, including the Company’s financial condition, results of operations, plans, objectives, future performance, business or industry, and usually can be identified by the use of forward-looking words, such as “anticipates,” “assumes,” “believes,” “can,” “continues,” “could,” “estimates,” “expects,” “forecasts,” “goal,” “intends,” “likely,” “may,” “might,” “objective,” “plans,” “potential,” “projects,” “remains,” “should,” “target,” “trend,” “will,” “would,” or similar expressions or variations thereof, and the negative thereof, but these terms are not the exclusive means of identifying such statements. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, as they are subject to risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, those described below. When considering these forward-looking statements, you should keep in mind these risks and uncertainties, as well as any cautionary statements the Company may make.

There are various important factors that could cause future results to differ materially from historical performance and any forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such differences, include, but are not limited to: changes in the global economy, including an economic slowdown, capital or financial market disruption, supply chain disruption, level of inflation, interest rate environment, residential and commercial property prices, employment levels, rate of growth and general business conditions, which could result in, among other things, reduced demand for loans, reduced availability of funding or increased funding costs, declines in asset values and/or recognition of allowance for credit losses; changes in local, regional and global business, economic and political conditions and geopolitical events, such as political unrest, wars and acts of terrorism; the soundness of other financial institutions and the impacts related to or resulting from bank failures and other economic and industry volatility, including potential increased regulatory requirements, FDIC insurance premiums and assessments, losses in the value of our investment portfolio, deposit withdrawals, or other adverse consequences of negative market perceptions of the banking industry or us; changes in laws or the regulatory environment, including regulatory reform initiatives and policies of the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (“Federal Reserve”), the FDIC, the SEC, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”), the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation — Division of Financial Institutions, the People’s Bank of China, China’s National Administration of Financial Regulation, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission, and the Monetary Authority of Singapore; changes and effects thereof in trade, monetary and fiscal policies and laws, including the ongoing trade, economic and political disputes between the U.S. and the People’s Republic of China and the monetary policies of the Federal Reserve; changes in the commercial and consumer real estate markets; changes in consumer or commercial spending, savings and borrowing habits, and patterns and behaviors; the impact from changes to income tax laws and regulations, federal spending and economic stimulus programs; the impact of any future U.S. federal government shutdown and uncertainty regarding the U.S. federal government’s debt limit and credit rating; the Company’s ability to compete effectively against financial institutions and other entities, including as a result of emerging technologies; the success and timing of the Company’s business strategies; the Company’s ability to retain key officers and employees; the impact on the Company’s funding costs, net interest income and net interest margin from changes in key variable market interest rates, competition, regulatory requirements and the Company’s product mix; changes in the Company’s costs of operation, compliance and expansion; the Company’s ability to adopt and successfully integrate new initiatives or technologies into its business in a strategic manner; the impact of communications or technology disruption, failure in, or breach of, the Company’s operational or security systems or infrastructure, or those of third party vendors with which the Company does business, including as a result of cyber-attacks, and other similar matters which could result in, among other things, confidential proprietary, or personally identifiable information being disclosed or misused, and materially impact the Company’s ability to provide services to its clients; the adequacy of the Company’s risk management framework, disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting; future credit quality and performance, including the Company’s expectations regarding future credit losses and allowance levels; the impact of adverse changes to the Company’s credit ratings from major credit rating agencies; the impact of adverse judgments or settlements in litigation and other proceedings; the impact of political developments, pandemics, wars, civil unrest, terrorism or other hostilities that may disrupt or increase volatility in securities or otherwise affect business and economic conditions on the Company and its customers; heightened regulatory and governmental oversight and scrutiny of the Company’s business practices, including dealings with consumers; the impact of reputational risk from negative publicity, fines, penalties and other negative consequences from regulatory violations, legal actions and the Company’s interactions with business partners, counterparties, service providers and other third parties; the impact of regulatory investigations, regulatory agreements, supervisory criticisms, and enforcement actions; changes in accounting standards as may be required by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) or other regulatory agencies and their impact on the Company’s critical accounting policies and assumptions; the Company’s capital requirements and its ability to generate capital internally or raise capital on favorable terms; the impact on the Company’s liquidity due to changes in the Company’s ability to receive dividends from its subsidiaries; any strategic acquisitions or divestitures and the introduction of new or expanded products and services; changes in the equity and debt securities markets; fluctuations in the Company’s stock price; fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; the impact of increased focus on social, environmental and sustainability matters, which may affect the operations of the Company and its customers and the economy more broadly; and the impact of climate change, natural or man-made disasters or calamities, such as wildfires, droughts, hurricanes, flooding and earthquakes or other events that may directly or indirectly result in a negative impact on the financial performance of the Company and its customers.

For a more detailed discussion of some of the factors that might cause such differences, see the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 filed with the SEC on February 29, 2024 (the “Company’s 2023 Form 10-K”) under the heading Item 1A. Risk Factors. You should treat forward-looking statements as speaking only as of the date they are made and based only on information then actually known to the Company. The Company does not undertake, and specifically disclaims any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect the occurrence of events or circumstances after the date of such statements except as required by law.