Raiffeisen Bank International AG Increases Position in Wabtec (NYSE:WAB)

Key Points

• Raiffeisen Bank International AG significantly increased its holdings in Wabtec by 159%, acquiring an additional 10,168 shares, bringing its total to 16,561 shares worth approximately $3.01 million.
• Multiple brokerages have raised their price targets for Wabtec, with Bank of America setting a new target of $236.00 and maintaining a "buy" rating, amid overall positive analyst sentiment for the stock.
• Wabtec announced a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 0.5% and a dividend payout ratio of 14.93%.

Raiffeisen Bank International AG raised its stake in Wabtec (NYSE:WAB - Free Report) by 159.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,561 shares of the transportation company's stock after acquiring an additional 10,168 shares during the quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG's holdings in Wabtec were worth $3,011,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WAB. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd increased its holdings in Wabtec by 30.5% in the 1st quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 5,097 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $957,000 after acquiring an additional 1,190 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Wabtec by 2,220.1% during the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 738,038 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $133,843,000 after buying an additional 706,227 shares in the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its holdings in Wabtec by 16.0% in the 1st quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 142,163 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $25,781,000 after acquiring an additional 19,600 shares during the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust boosted its holdings in Wabtec by 2.8% in the first quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 3,437 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $623,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in Wabtec by 3.0% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 313,459 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $56,846,000 after buying an additional 9,041 shares during the period. 91.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Wabtec news, CTO Eric Gebhardt sold 6,151 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.39, for a total value of $1,244,900.89. Following the sale, the chief technology officer owned 18,697 shares in the company, valued at $3,784,085.83. This trade represents a 24.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Rafael Santana sold 886 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.35, for a total value of $189,028.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 141,186 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,122,033.10. The trade was a 0.62% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 20,141 shares of company stock valued at $4,071,334. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on WAB. Susquehanna boosted their target price on Wabtec from $210.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. KeyCorp restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $240.00 target price (up from $220.00) on shares of Wabtec in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Wabtec from $231.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Wabtec from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Wabtec from $220.00 to $226.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $221.71.

Wabtec Price Performance

WAB stock traded down $0.44 during trading on Thursday, hitting $187.91. The company had a trading volume of 1,046,638 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,086,364. The business has a 50 day moving average of $204.31 and a 200 day moving average of $193.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.11. Wabtec has a fifty-two week low of $151.81 and a fifty-two week high of $216.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44.

Wabtec (NYSE:WAB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The transportation company reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.18 by $0.09. Wabtec had a return on equity of 13.65% and a net margin of 10.92%. The company had revenue of $2.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.76 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.96 EPS. The business's revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Wabtec will post 8.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Wabtec Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 14th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 14th. Wabtec's dividend payout ratio is 14.93%.

Wabtec Profile

Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides technology-based locomotives, equipment, systems, and services for the freight rail and passenger transit industries worldwide. It offers diesel-electric, battery, and liquid natural gas-powered locomotives; engines, electric motors, and propulsion systems; and marine and mining products.