Natixis Advisors LLC Increases Holdings in Wabtec $WAB

Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) by 2.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 107,689 shares of the transportation company’s stock after buying an additional 2,818 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC owned 0.06% of Wabtec worth $22,986,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. BOKF NA raised its position in shares of Wabtec by 66.7% during the 4th quarter. BOKF NA now owns 175 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wabtec during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Westfuller Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Wabtec by 83.2% during the 4th quarter. Westfuller Advisors LLC now owns 207 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. raised its position in shares of Wabtec by 258.3% during the 4th quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 215 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its position in shares of Wabtec by 35.6% during the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 217 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. 91.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WAB has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $318.00 target price on shares of Wabtec in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Stephens upped their target price on shares of Wabtec from $230.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Wabtec from $283.00 to $292.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Rothschild & Co Redburn upgraded shares of Wabtec from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $262.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, Susquehanna restated a “positive” rating and set a $305.00 target price on shares of Wabtec in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $289.82.

Insider Transactions at Wabtec

In related news, EVP Gina Trombley sold 4,013 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.87, for a total value of $970,624.31. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 13,841 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,347,722.67. This represents a 22.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Rafael Santana sold 1,163 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.77, for a total transaction of $306,764.51. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 127,566 shares in the company, valued at $33,648,083.82. This trade represents a 0.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 67,191 shares of company stock worth $17,922,608 over the last three months. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wabtec Stock Performance

Wabtec stock opened at $260.77 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.54. Wabtec has a 1-year low of $184.26 and a 1-year high of $275.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.94. The company’s 50-day moving average is $261.06 and its 200 day moving average is $241.22.

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

Wabtec Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, May 22nd were given a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 22nd. Wabtec’s dividend payout ratio is 17.54%.

Wabtec declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.20 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the transportation company to repurchase up to 2.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.