Wabtec $WAB Shares Sold by Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc.

Key Points

• Heavy insider selling: CEO Rafael Santana sold 60,852 shares and insider Nalin Jain sold 7,936, with insiders offloading 92,364 shares worth about $24.5M in the quarter (insider ownership ~0.57%).
• Mixed Q1 results — Wabtec reported EPS of $2.71 beating estimates but revenue of ~$2.95B missed consensus (~$3.08B); management set FY2026 EPS guidance of 10.25–10.65 and analysts' average price target is roughly $289.55.
• The board approved a $1.2 billion share repurchase plan (up to ~2.9% of outstanding stock) and raised the quarterly dividend to $0.31, highlighting a focus on shareholder returns.

Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc. reduced its holdings in Wabtec (NYSE:WAB - Free Report) by 5.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 72,387 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 4,093 shares during the quarter. Wabtec makes up 3.3% of Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc.'s holdings in Wabtec were worth $15,451,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its stake in Wabtec by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 7,230 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,543,000 after acquiring an additional 271 shares during the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Wabtec during the fourth quarter worth about $358,000. Copeland Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Wabtec by 302.2% during the fourth quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 4,858 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,037,000 after acquiring an additional 3,650 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. increased its stake in Wabtec by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 6,664 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,422,000 after acquiring an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Wabtec by 15,275.0% during the fourth quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 615 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $131,000 after acquiring an additional 611 shares during the last quarter. 91.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Nalin Jain sold 7,936 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.09, for a total value of $2,095,818.24. Following the sale, the insider owned 6,364 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,680,668.76. This trade represents a 55.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Rafael Santana sold 60,852 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.89, for a total value of $16,362,494.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 128,729 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,613,940.81. This trade represents a 32.10% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 92,364 shares of company stock worth $24,522,522. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wabtec Trading Down 0.7%

NYSE:WAB opened at $267.46 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $45.38 billion, a PE ratio of 37.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.99. Wabtec has a 52 week low of $180.06 and a 52 week high of $275.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The business's 50 day moving average is $254.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $228.98.

Wabtec (NYSE:WAB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.08 billion. Wabtec had a return on equity of 14.52% and a net margin of 10.52%.The business's revenue was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.28 EPS. Wabtec has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.250-10.650 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Wabtec will post 10.5 EPS for the current year.

Wabtec announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 11th that allows the company to repurchase $1.20 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the transportation company to repurchase up to 2.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wabtec Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th were issued a $0.31 dividend. This is a positive change from Wabtec's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Wabtec's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Wabtec from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 14th. Stephens increased their target price on Wabtec from $230.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $290.00 target price (down from $300.00) on shares of Wabtec in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $315.00 price target on shares of Wabtec in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn raised Wabtec from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the company from $262.00 to $285.00 in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $289.55.

Key Wabtec News

Here are the key news stories impacting Wabtec this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 earnings beat and higher sales — Wabtec reported Q1 EPS of $2.71 and growth in quarterly sales, which investors view as proof of ongoing margin and revenue recovery. Wabtec posts higher quarterly sales and earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Price target raised by Wells Fargo — Wells Fargo lifted its target to $284 (from $270) and kept an "equal weight" rating, signaling analyst confidence in further upside versus current levels. Benzinga coverage of PT raise
• Positive Sentiment: Technical momentum — Wabtec recently crossed above its 20-day moving average, a short-term bullish technical signal that can attract momentum traders. Zacks: WAB broke out above 20-day MA
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst/industry bullishness — Multiple pieces (Seeking Alpha, Zacks buy lists) highlight Wabtec as a 2026/2027 growth candidate and include it among "old-economy" stocks with more room to run. These narratives can support continued investor interest. Seeking Alpha: Wabtec has a head of steam Zacks: Buy 5 high-flying old-economy stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue slightly missed consensus — while EPS beat, reported revenue (~$2.95B) came in below some estimates (~$3.08B), which tempers the beat and leaves room for debate on top-line momentum. Yahoo Finance: Wabtec reports Q1
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings-call summaries flag growth but note headwinds — sell-side and summary coverage (TipRanks, transcripts) emphasize solid margins and guidance positioning while calling out cyclical/market headwinds. Earnings call transcript TipRanks: Earnings call highlights
• Negative Sentiment: Short interest rose meaningfully in April — short interest increased ~12.9% to ~2.49M shares (~1.5% of shares outstanding), raising the short-interest ratio to ~2.0 days. Higher shorting can add selling pressure or volatility in the near term.

About Wabtec

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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