National Pension Service Purchases 3,218 Shares of Wabtec $WAB

National Pension Service lifted its position in shares of Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) by 1.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 288,609 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,218 shares during the period. National Pension Service’s holdings in Wabtec were worth $61,604,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in WAB. Guggenheim Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Wabtec by 7.4% during the second quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 4,938 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,034,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia increased its stake in shares of Wabtec by 0.5% during the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 17,890 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $3,745,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Nebula Research & Development LLC increased its stake in shares of Wabtec by 208.7% during the second quarter. Nebula Research & Development LLC now owns 5,386 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,128,000 after purchasing an additional 3,641 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its stake in shares of Wabtec by 11.6% during the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 92,097 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $19,281,000 after purchasing an additional 9,545 shares during the period. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Wabtec by 19.2% during the second quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 30,352 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $6,354,000 after purchasing an additional 4,889 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup raised their price objective on Wabtec from $283.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $318.00 price objective on shares of Wabtec in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn upgraded Wabtec from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $262.00 to $285.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $303.00 price objective on shares of Wabtec in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Wabtec from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 14th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Wabtec presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $289.82.

Insider Buying and Selling at Wabtec

In other news, CEO Rafael Santana sold 60,852 shares of Wabtec stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Gina Trombley sold 4,013 shares of Wabtec stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.87, for a total value of $970,624.31. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 13,841 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,347,722.67. The trade was a 22.48% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 67,191 shares of company stock worth $17,922,608. Corporate insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Wabtec Price Performance

Wabtec stock opened at $261.27 on Friday. Wabtec has a one year low of $184.26 and a one year high of $275.84. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $259.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $239.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market cap of $44.33 billion, a PE ratio of 36.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.97.

Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The transportation company reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.62 by $0.09. Wabtec had a return on equity of 14.52% and a net margin of 10.52%.The company had revenue of $2.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.28 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Wabtec has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.250-10.650 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Wabtec will post 10.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wabtec Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 22nd will be paid a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Wabtec’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.54%.

Wabtec announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 11th that permits the company to buyback $1.20 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the transportation company to reacquire up to 2.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.