Public Sector Pension Investment Board Boosts Holdings in Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY)

Key Points

• The Public Sector Pension Investment Board has increased its holdings in Cathay General Bancorp by 46.4%, now owning 259,783 shares valued at approximately $11.18 million.
• Several analysts have issued mixed ratings and target price adjustments for Cathay General Bancorp, with an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $49.71.
• Cathay General Bancorp recently announced a $150 million stock buyback program, allowing for the repurchase of up to 5% of its outstanding shares.

Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY - Free Report) by 46.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 259,783 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 82,374 shares during the quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board owned about 0.37% of Cathay General Bancorp worth $11,178,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp in the first quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new position in Cathay General Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $212,000. Vestcor Inc bought a new position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp in the first quarter valued at approximately $214,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in Cathay General Bancorp during the first quarter valued at $220,000. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp during the first quarter valued at about $262,000. Institutional investors own 75.01% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Cathay General Bancorp from $45.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Stephens lowered shares of Cathay General Bancorp from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $50.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, August 4th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $53.00 target price on shares of Cathay General Bancorp and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Cathay General Bancorp from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $49.71.

Cathay General Bancorp Trading Down 2.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:CATY traded down $1.02 during trading on Friday, reaching $47.30. 395,771 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 430,318. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.27 billion, a PE ratio of 11.43 and a beta of 0.97. Cathay General Bancorp has a 12-month low of $36.06 and a 12-month high of $55.29. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $46.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $44.36.

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.10. The firm had revenue of $196.61 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $197.04 million. Cathay General Bancorp had a net margin of 21.44% and a return on equity of 10.39%. Cathay General Bancorp's revenue was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.97 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Cathay General Bancorp will post 4.47 EPS for the current year.

Cathay General Bancorp declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 4th that allows the company to buyback $150.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the bank to repurchase up to 5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Cathay General Bancorp 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.