Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,000,000 shares, a decline of 9.5% from the January 15th total of 2,210,000 shares. Currently, 3.0% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 347,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.8 days.

Cathay General Bancorp Price Performance

CATY stock traded down $0.01 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $46.58. 193,346 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 337,030. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $47.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $46.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market cap of $3.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.76 and a beta of 1.12. Cathay General Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $33.88 and a fifty-two week high of $55.29.

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The bank reported $1.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.02. Cathay General Bancorp had a net margin of 20.57% and a return on equity of 10.70%. Research analysts predict that Cathay General Bancorp will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Cathay General Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th will be given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.92%. Cathay General Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.34%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cathay General Bancorp

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Cathay General Bancorp by 332.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 25,313 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,087,000 after acquiring an additional 19,458 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Cathay General Bancorp by 17.7% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 52,236 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,509,000 after purchasing an additional 7,837 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Cathay General Bancorp by 1.2% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,713,650 shares of the bank’s stock worth $73,615,000 after buying an additional 20,840 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Cathay General Bancorp by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,758,777 shares of the bank’s stock worth $118,489,000 after buying an additional 87,847 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its holdings in Cathay General Bancorp by 104.3% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 145,690 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,257,000 after buying an additional 74,394 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.01% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on CATY. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Cathay General Bancorp from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Stephens cut their target price on Cathay General Bancorp from $60.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on Cathay General Bancorp from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Wedbush upped their price objective on Cathay General Bancorp from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $50.80.

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.