East West Bancorp reports record quarterly net income of $382 million

East West Bancorp, Inc. (EWBC) reported record third-quarter net income of $382 million, or $2.76 per diluted share, on record total revenue of $823 million for the quarter ended Sept. 30, 2026.

The Pasadena, California-based parent of East West Bank released the results Tuesday, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Here's how the company did:

• Diluted earnings per share: $2.76 vs. $2.65 a year earlier
• Total revenue: $823 million vs. $778 million a year earlier
• Net income: $382 million vs. $368 million a year earlier

Total revenue rose $32 million, or 4%, from the second quarter, driven primarily by record quarterly net interest income.

Net income increased $18 million, or 5%, from the second quarter. Diluted earnings per share rose 5% from $2.63 in the prior quarter.

Pre-tax, pre-provision income, or revenue minus noninterest expense, totaled a record $540 million. That was up $39 million, or 8%, from the second quarter.

Net interest income and margin

Net interest income totaled $719 million, up $34 million, or 5%, from $685 million in the second quarter. It was up $41 million, or 6%, from the third quarter of 2025.

Net interest margin was 3.49%, a 6 basis-point increase from the prior quarter and a 4 basis-point decrease from a year earlier.

The average loan yield was 6.05%, up 3 basis points from the prior quarter. The average cost of interest-bearing deposits was 2.81%, unchanged from the prior quarter.

Loans and deposits

Total loans reached a record $59.7 billion as of Sept. 30. That was an increase of $0.7 billion, or 1%, from June 30, and up $3.9 billion, or 7%, from a year earlier.

Total deposits reached a record $71.5 billion, up $1.4 billion, or 2%, from the prior quarter and $4.9 billion, or 7%, from a year earlier. Noninterest-bearing deposits made up 26% of the total.

"I am pleased to report another record-breaking quarter for East West," said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Dominic Ng. Ng said the deposit growth "underscores the success of our small business checking strategy."

Total assets were $86.0 billion as of Sept. 30, up 8% from $79.7 billion a year earlier.

Fee income and expenses

Noninterest income totaled $104 million, a decrease of $3 million, or 2%, from the second quarter and an increase of $3 million, or 3%, from a year earlier.

Fee income was $93 million, down $2 million, or 2%, from the prior quarter and up $2 million, or 2%, from a year earlier.

Total noninterest expense was $283 million, including $24 million of amortization for tax credit and Community Reinvestment Act investments. Operating noninterest expense was $259 million, down $9 million, or 3%, from the second quarter.

Compensation and employee benefits expense was $170 million, a decrease of $3 million, primarily reflecting lower deferred compensation expense and certain benefit accrual adjustments in the prior quarter.

The efficiency ratio, or noninterest expense as a share of revenue, was 34.4%, compared with 36.7% in the prior quarter.

Income tax expense was $113 million, and the effective tax rate was 22.7%, compared with 22.2% in the second quarter.

Asset quality

Net charge-offs were $22 million, or 0.15% annualized of average loans held for investment, compared with $27 million, or 0.19%, in the second quarter.

Nonperforming assets rose $9 million to $256 million as of Sept. 30, from $247 million at June 30. The increase was driven primarily by a rise in other real estate owned.

The allowance for loan losses was $865 million, or 1.45% of loans held for investment, compared with $842 million, or 1.43%, in the prior quarter. The provision for credit losses was $45 million, up from $33 million.

Capital and dividend

Stockholders' equity was $9.0 billion, down 2% from the prior quarter. Book value per share was $65.97, down $1.51, or 2%, primarily reflecting changes in the value of available-for-sale debt securities net of tax.

The company's Sept. 30 regulatory capital ratios and risk-weighted assets are preliminary. The company said its regulatory capital ratios are well in excess of requirements for well-capitalized institutions. The CET1 capital ratio was 15.41%.

The board declared a fourth-quarter 2026 dividend of $0.80 per share, payable Nov. 17 to shareholders of record as of Nov. 2. The company did not repurchase any shares in the third quarter, and $117 million of its share repurchase authorization remains available.

Full-year 2026 outlook

The company's earnings presentation, furnished as Exhibit 99.2, updated its full-year 2026 outlook. Net interest income is now expected to grow 9% to 10% from a year earlier, up from 8% to 9%.

Loans are expected to grow 6% to 8% year over year. Operating noninterest expense is expected to grow 8% to 9%.

Net charge-offs are expected to be in the range of 15 to 20 basis points, narrowed from 15 to 25 basis points. The effective tax rate is expected to be 22% to 23%.

Amortization of tax credit and CRA investments is expected to be $90 million to $95 million, narrowed from $85 million to $95 million. The presentation also said net interest margin is expected to remain broadly stable in the fourth quarter.

Ng said the company's "diversified business model, conservatively managed balance sheet, and industry-leading profitability should enable us to deliver top-quartile returns for our shareholders in the years ahead."

The company will host a conference call on the results at 2:00 p.m. PT, or 5:00 p.m. ET, on Tuesday.