Short Interest in Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) Drops By 19.0%

Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) saw a large drop in short interest in March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 1,852,504 shares, a drop of 19.0% from the February 26th total of 2,287,421 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 916,528 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days. Currently, 1.1% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WAB has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Wabtec from $224.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Wabtec from $258.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Wabtec from $215.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Wabtec from $240.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Susquehanna set a $300.00 price target on Wabtec in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $270.45.

Wabtec Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE WAB traded down $2.92 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $238.19. The stock had a trading volume of 160,111 shares, compared to its average volume of 831,585. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $245.78 and its 200 day moving average price is $219.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 1.11. Wabtec has a twelve month low of $151.81 and a twelve month high of $266.27. The firm has a market cap of $40.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.99.

Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The transportation company reported $2.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $2.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.86 billion. Wabtec had a net margin of 10.48% and a return on equity of 14.12%. Wabtec’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.68 earnings per share. Wabtec has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.050-10.450 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Wabtec will post 8.54 EPS for the current year.

Wabtec Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 17th. This is a positive change from Wabtec’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Wabtec’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.16%.

Wabtec declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 11th that allows the company to buyback $1.20 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the transportation company to repurchase up to 2.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Gina Trombley sold 4,013 shares of Wabtec stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.87, for a total transaction of $970,624.31. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 13,841 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,347,722.67. This trade represents a 22.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Sameer Gaur sold 1,150 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.62, for a total value of $302,013.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 12,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,155,904.54. This represents a 8.73% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 31,512 shares of company stock worth $8,160,028 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Wabtec

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hilltop Holdings Inc. increased its position in shares of Wabtec by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 1,069 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $228,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. CI Investments Inc. increased its holdings in Wabtec by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 865 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $173,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Wabtec by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,856 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,037,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel raised its stake in shares of Wabtec by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 2,051 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $438,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Wabtec by 1.3% in the third quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 4,082 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $818,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.69% of the company’s stock.

Wabtec Company Profile

Wabtec Corporation (Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corporation) is a global provider of equipment, systems and services for the rail industry. The company supplies products and solutions to freight railroads, transit agencies and other industrial operators, focusing on technologies that improve the performance, safety and efficiency of locomotives and rail networks. Wabtec’s business spans new equipment manufacturing, aftermarket parts and services, and digital and control systems for rail operations.

Product and service offerings include locomotive systems and components, braking and air systems, propulsion and traction equipment, signaling and control technologies, and a range of aftermarket services such as maintenance, remanufacturing, parts distribution and fleet modernization.