Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $997.79 EPS

Key Points

• Cathay reported quarterly EPS of $999.00, cited as beating estimates by $997.79, while posting a 10.89% return on equity and a 22.76% net margin.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.38 (annualized $1.52), implying a ~2.8% yield and a dividend payout ratio of 33.48%.
• Shares traded at $53.72 with a market cap of ~$3.6B and a P/E of 11.83; insiders executed small sales (CEO sold 4,836 shares under a 10b5‑1 plan), institutions own ~75% of the stock, and the analysts' average price target is $52.50 (consensus: Hold).

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY - Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The bank reported $999.00 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.21 by $997.79, Zacks reports. Cathay General Bancorp had a return on equity of 10.89% and a net margin of 22.76%.

Cathay General Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of Cathay General Bancorp stock traded up $0.16 on Wednesday, reaching $53.72. The company's stock had a trading volume of 170,605 shares, compared to its average volume of 453,684. The company has a market capitalization of $3.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.83 and a beta of 0.82. Cathay General Bancorp has a 52-week low of $40.96 and a 52-week high of $55.09. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $50.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $49.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Cathay General Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 26th were given a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. This is a boost from Cathay General Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 26th. Cathay General Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.48%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Chang Liu sold 4,836 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.35, for a total transaction of $243,492.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 127,819 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,435,686.65. The trade was a 3.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Thomas M. Lo sold 1,000 shares of the business'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 sale, the executive vice president owned 2,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $100,460. The trade was a 33.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 4.76% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Cathay General Bancorp

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in CATY. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp by 375.1% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 420,509 shares of the bank's stock worth $20,189,000 after purchasing an additional 331,997 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,685,203 shares of the bank's stock worth $81,547,000 after purchasing an additional 105,484 shares in the last quarter. HRT Financial LP purchased a new stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp during the second quarter worth approximately $3,987,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp during the third quarter worth approximately $3,910,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp by 674.4% during the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 93,282 shares of the bank's stock worth $4,478,000 after purchasing an additional 81,236 shares in the last quarter. 75.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Cathay General Bancorp in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $52.50.

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.

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