Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) Receives $50.60 Average PT from Analysts

Shares of Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) have received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the six ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $50.60.

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on CATY shares. DA Davidson upped their price target on Cathay General Bancorp from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Cathay General Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, November 16th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Cathay General Bancorp in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Cathay General Bancorp from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Chang Liu sold 5,165 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.24, for a total transaction of $238,829.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 108,478 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,016,022.72. This trade represents a 4.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Thomas M. Lo sold 1,000 shares of Cathay General Bancorp stock in a transaction on Monday, October 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.83, for a total value of $46,830.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 3,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $140,490. The trade was a 25.00% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 38,755 shares of company stock worth $1,820,148 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 4.76% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cathay General Bancorp

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of CATY. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Cathay General Bancorp by 5,438.5% during the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 720 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 707 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp by 101.8% in the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 781 shares of the bank’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp in the third quarter worth approximately $43,000. Danske Bank A S purchased a new stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp during the third quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cathay General Bancorp by 319.7% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,704 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $78,000 after buying an additional 1,298 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.01% of the company’s stock.

Cathay General Bancorp Stock Performance

Cathay General Bancorp stock opened at $50.80 on Tuesday. Cathay General Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $36.06 and a fifty-two week high of $51.94. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $49.19 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $48.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market cap of $3.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.73 and a beta of 0.85.

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The bank reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by ($0.02). Cathay General Bancorp had a net margin of 22.26% and a return on equity of 10.60%. The firm had revenue of $210.61 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $202.71 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.94 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Cathay General Bancorp will post 4.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cathay General Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st were issued a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. Cathay General Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.41%.

Cathay General Bancorp Company Profile

Cathay General Bancorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Los Angeles, California, trading on NASDAQ under the symbol CATY. Its principal subsidiary, Cathay Bank, provides a full suite of financial services to commercial, institutional and retail clients. As a community-focused institution, the company emphasizes relationship banking and tailored solutions for businesses and individuals.

Founded in 1962 by a group of Chinese American entrepreneurs, Cathay has expanded from a single branch operation in downtown Los Angeles into one of the largest Asian-American banks in the United States.