Cathay General Bancorp’s (CATY) Outperform Rating Reiterated at Wedbush

Wedbush reiterated their outperform rating on shares of Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. Wedbush currently has a $44.00 price objective on the bank’s stock. Wedbush also issued estimates for Cathay General Bancorp’s Q2 2024 earnings at $0.90 EPS, Q3 2024 earnings at $0.96 EPS, Q4 2024 earnings at $1.04 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $4.00 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $0.99 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $1.03 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $1.10 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $1.12 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $4.25 EPS.

CATY has been the topic of a number of other research reports. StockNews.com cut Cathay General Bancorp from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note on Saturday, April 6th. Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of Cathay General Bancorp from $46.00 to $40.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $39.00.

Cathay General Bancorp Stock Down 1.6 %

NASDAQ CATY opened at $34.96 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.73 and a beta of 1.12. Cathay General Bancorp has a 12 month low of $27.24 and a 12 month high of $45.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $37.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.79.

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 22nd. The bank reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $339.25 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $188.85 million. Cathay General Bancorp had a net margin of 24.41% and a return on equity of 13.02%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.32 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Cathay General Bancorp will post 3.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cathay General Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 27th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.89%. Cathay General Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.09%.

Insider Transactions at Cathay General Bancorp

In related news, Vice Chairman Anthony M. Tang sold 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.45, for a total transaction of $304,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 204,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,885,525. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 4.76% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Cathay General Bancorp

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CATY. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in Cathay General Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth about $51,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp bought a new stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $109,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp by 16.0% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 3,559 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $124,000 after buying an additional 491 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Cathay General Bancorp by 545.5% in the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,260 shares of the bank’s stock worth $148,000 after buying an additional 3,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TFO Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in Cathay General Bancorp by 22,160.0% during the fourth quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,452 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $198,000 after acquiring an additional 4,432 shares in the last quarter. 75.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Cathay General Bancorp

Cathay General Bancorp operates as the holding company for Cathay Bank that offers various commercial banking products and services to individuals, professionals, and small to medium-sized businesses in the United States. The company offers various deposit products, including passbook accounts, checking accounts, money market deposit accounts, certificates of deposit, individual retirement accounts, and public funds deposits.