BNP Paribas Financial Markets Cuts Stock Position in Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets cut its holdings in shares of Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY - Free Report) by 47.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 16,036 shares of the bank's stock after selling 14,591 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets' holdings in Cathay General Bancorp were worth $763,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position 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 buying an additional 330 shares during the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $55,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at $82,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cathay General Bancorp by 189.8% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,794 shares of the bank's stock valued at $86,000 after purchasing an additional 1,175 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its stake in Cathay General Bancorp by 68.5% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,730 shares of the bank's stock worth $178,000 after buying an additional 1,517 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.01% of the company's stock.

Cathay General Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CATY traded up $1.07 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $43.92. The company's stock had a trading volume of 88,829 shares, compared to its average volume of 414,708. Cathay General Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $34.75 and a fifty-two week high of $55.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market cap of $3.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.09 and a beta of 0.91. The firm's 50 day moving average is $41.72 and its 200-day moving average is $45.83.

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 21st. The bank reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.03. Cathay General Bancorp had a net margin of 20.57% and a return on equity of 10.70%. The firm had revenue of $187.84 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $186.17 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.05 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Cathay General Bancorp will post 4.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cathay General Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 29th will be paid a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 29th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.10%. Cathay General Bancorp's payout ratio is 34.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Thomas M. Lo sold 729 shares of the 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $180,000. This represents a 15.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 4.85% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group set a $53.00 price target on Cathay General Bancorp and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Cathay General Bancorp from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $51.00 price target on shares of Cathay General Bancorp in a research note 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 MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $50.17.

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.