Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) Receives Consensus Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Key Points

• Cathay General Bancorp has a consensus analyst rating of "Hold" from five analysts (three hold, two buy) with an average 12‑month target price of $52.50.
• Recent quarterly results beat estimates—reported $1.29 EPS vs. $1.19 expected, revenue rose 14.4% year‑over‑year, ROE was 10.89%, and analysts forecast about 5.14 EPS for the fiscal year.
• Insiders recently sold shares (including the CEO under a Rule 10b5‑1 plan) while institutional investors increased stakes—Norges Bank added roughly $41.1M—with institutions owning ~75% of the stock and insiders ~4.85%.

Shares of Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY - Get Free Report) have received a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the five analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $52.50.

Separately, Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Cathay General Bancorp in a research report on Monday, December 29th.

Insider Activity at Cathay General Bancorp

In related news, 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 transaction of $50,230.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 2,000 shares in the company, valued at $100,460. The trade was a 33.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 value of $243,492.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 127,819 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,435,686.65. The trade was a 3.65% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 4.85% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cathay General Bancorp

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CATY. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Cathay General Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth approximately $41,140,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in Cathay General Bancorp by 1,274,076.3% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 484,187 shares of the bank's stock worth $23,430,000 after purchasing an additional 484,149 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in 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 during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new stake in Cathay General Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $7,426,000. Finally, Cibc World Market Inc. purchased a new stake in Cathay General Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $6,355,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.01% of the company's stock.

Cathay General Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of Cathay General Bancorp stock opened at $53.78 on Thursday. Cathay General Bancorp has a one year low of $40.96 and a one year high of $55.09. The company has a market cap of $3.60 billion, a PE ratio of 11.85 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $50.88 and a 200-day simple moving average of $49.72.

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.10. Cathay General Bancorp had a return on equity of 10.89% and a net margin of 22.76%.The business had revenue of $213.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $211.27 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.98 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Cathay General Bancorp will post 5.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cathay General Bancorp Increases Dividend

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

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.

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