Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) Shares Bought by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY - Free Report) by 2.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 354,457 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 8,860 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.51% of Cathay General Bancorp worth $15,252,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Cathay General Bancorp by 63.5% in the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 850 shares of the bank's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 330 shares in the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $55,000. TIAA Trust National Association bought a new stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $204,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $212,000. Finally, Xponance Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $239,000. 75.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on CATY shares. Jefferies Financial Group set a $53.00 target price on shares of Cathay General Bancorp and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $51.00 price target on shares of Cathay General Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Cathay General Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $50.17.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Thomas M. Lo sold 729 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total transaction of $32,805.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 4,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $180,000. This represents a 15.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 4.85% of the company's stock.

Cathay General Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of CATY opened at $48.10 on Friday. The company's 50 day moving average price is $44.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.48. Cathay General Bancorp has a 52 week low of $36.06 and a 52 week high of $55.29. The company has a market capitalization of $3.37 billion, a PE ratio of 12.15 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04.

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 21st. The bank reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.03. Cathay General Bancorp had a net margin of 20.55% and a return on equity of 10.23%. The firm had revenue of $187.84 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $186.17 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.05 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Cathay General Bancorp will post 4.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cathay General Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 29th were given a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 29th. Cathay General Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is 34.34%.

Cathay General Bancorp declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, June 4th that authorizes the company to buyback $150.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the bank to purchase up to 5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Cathay General Bancorp Company Profile

Cathay General Bancorp operates as the holding company for Cathay Bank that offers various commercial banking products and services to individuals, professionals, and small to medium-sized businesses in the United States. The company offers various deposit products, including passbook accounts, checking accounts, money market deposit accounts, certificates of deposit, individual retirement accounts, and public funds deposits.

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