Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the five research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $52.50.

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CATY. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Cathay General Bancorp in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Cathay General Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, November 16th.

Cathay General Bancorp Stock Performance

Cathay General Bancorp stock opened at $50.14 on Wednesday. Cathay General Bancorp has a twelve month low of $36.06 and a twelve month high of $54.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The company has a market capitalization of $3.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.04 and a beta of 0.86. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $51.23 and its 200 day moving average is $49.38.

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The bank reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.13. Cathay General Bancorp had a return on equity of 10.89% and a net margin of 22.76%.The business had revenue of $222.83 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $211.76 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.12 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Cathay General Bancorp will post 4.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cathay General Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 26th will be given a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. This is an increase from Cathay General Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 26th. Cathay General Bancorp’s payout ratio is 33.48%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Thomas M. Lo sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.23, for a total value of $50,230.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 2,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $100,460. This represents a 33.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 4.76% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CATY. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp by 5,438.5% during the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 720 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 707 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in Cathay General Bancorp by 101.8% during the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 781 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares during the period. Salomon & Ludwin LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at about $43,000. Danske Bank A S purchased a new stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at about $48,000. Finally, Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth approximately $76,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.01% of the company’s stock.

About Cathay General Bancorp

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.