Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) Shares Sold by Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lessened its holdings in Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) by 2.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,090,239 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 26,180 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 1.56% of Cathay General Bancorp worth $46,913,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CATY. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp by 63.5% in the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 850 shares of the bank’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 330 shares during the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth $55,000. TIAA Trust National Association acquired a new stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth $204,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth $212,000. Finally, Xponance Inc. acquired a new position in Cathay General Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at $239,000. 75.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cathay General Bancorp Stock Performance

CATY opened at $48.73 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.31 and a beta of 0.93. Cathay General Bancorp has a 1-year low of $36.06 and a 1-year high of $55.29. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $44.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $44.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 21st. The bank reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $187.84 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $186.17 million. Cathay General Bancorp had a net margin of 20.55% and a return on equity of 10.23%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.05 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Cathay General Bancorp will post 4.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cathay General Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 29th were paid a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 29th. Cathay General Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.34%.

Cathay General Bancorp declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, June 4th that permits the company to buyback $150.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the bank to buy up to 5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group set a $53.00 price objective on shares of Cathay General Bancorp and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $51.00 target price on shares of Cathay General Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $50.17.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cathay General Bancorp

In other news, EVP Thomas M. Lo sold 729 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total value of $32,805.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 4,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $180,000. This represents a 15.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 4.85% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.