Principal Financial Group Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Wabtec $WAB

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group increased its Wabtec stake by 2.5% in the fourth quarter, adding 4,574 shares to hold 190,055 shares worth about $40.6 million.
• Wall Street remains broadly constructive on Wabtec, with 10 Buy ratings and 2 Hold ratings, and a consensus price target of $289.82. Recent updates were mixed, with Morgan Stanley and Wolfe Research reiterating positive views while JPMorgan trimmed its target slightly.
• Wabtec reported Q1 earnings that beat estimates, posting EPS of $2.71 versus $2.62 expected, though revenue came in below forecasts. The company also authorized a $1.2 billion share repurchase plan, signaling confidence in its stock value.

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Wabtec (NYSE:WAB - Free Report) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 190,055 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 4,574 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.11% of Wabtec worth $40,567,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WAB. Piscataqua Savings Bank raised its holdings in shares of Wabtec by 12,800.0% in the 3rd quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 129 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 128 shares during the period. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wabtec in the 4th quarter valued at $42,000. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wabtec in the 3rd quarter valued at $44,000. Westfuller Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Wabtec by 83.2% in the 4th quarter. Westfuller Advisors LLC now owns 207 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Finally, Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Wabtec by 258.3% in the 4th quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 215 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 155 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.69% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on WAB. Stephens boosted their price objective on Wabtec from $230.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Wabtec from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 10th. Wolfe Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $303.00 price objective on shares of Wabtec in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Wabtec from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $318.00 price target on shares of Wabtec in a report on Monday, April 27th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $289.82.

Wabtec Trading Down 0.0%

NYSE:WAB opened at $265.57 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $255.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $232.72. The stock has a market cap of $45.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.97. Wabtec has a 1 year low of $184.26 and a 1 year high of $275.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 1.02.

Wabtec (NYSE:WAB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The transportation company reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.62 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $2.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.08 billion. Wabtec had a return on equity of 14.52% and a net margin of 10.52%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.28 EPS. Wabtec has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.250-10.650 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Wabtec will post 10.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wabtec announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 11th that permits the company to repurchase $1.20 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the transportation company to repurchase up to 2.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Wabtec

In other news, insider Nalin Jain sold 7,936 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.09, for a total transaction of $2,095,818.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 6,364 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,680,668.76. This represents a 55.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Gina Trombley sold 4,013 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.87, for a total value of $970,624.31. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 13,841 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,347,722.67. This represents a 22.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 93,527 shares of company stock worth $24,829,287. Corporate insiders own 0.57% of the company's stock.

Wabtec Company Profile

Wabtec Corporation (Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corporation) is a global provider of equipment, systems and services for the rail industry. The company supplies products and solutions to freight railroads, transit agencies and other industrial operators, focusing on technologies that improve the performance, safety and efficiency of locomotives and rail networks. Wabtec's business spans new equipment manufacturing, aftermarket parts and services, and digital and control systems for rail operations.

Product and service offerings include locomotive systems and components, braking and air systems, propulsion and traction equipment, signaling and control technologies, and a range of aftermarket services such as maintenance, remanufacturing, parts distribution and fleet modernization.

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