Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. Purchases New Shares in Wabtec $WAB

Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,819 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $522,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Wabtec during the second quarter worth $3,741,077,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in Wabtec in the 2nd quarter valued at about $212,692,000. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new stake in Wabtec in the 2nd quarter valued at about $207,228,000. Junto Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Wabtec in the 2nd quarter valued at about $142,007,000. Finally, Amundi grew its position in shares of Wabtec by 43.9% during the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 1,580,919 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $426,216,000 after purchasing an additional 482,323 shares in the last quarter. 91.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wabtec Trading Down 1.1%

WAB opened at $300.88 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Wabtec has a twelve month low of $194.93 and a twelve month high of $307.96. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $285.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $270.54.

Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The transportation company reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.73 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $3.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.20 billion. Wabtec had a net margin of 11.20% and a return on equity of 15.72%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.32 EPS. Analysts predict that Wabtec will post 10.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wabtec Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 17th will be given a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 17th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Wabtec’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.40%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Michael Fetsko sold 3,250 shares of Wabtec stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.22, for a total value of $952,965.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 37,380 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,960,563.60. This trade represents a 8.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Gregory Sbrocco sold 952 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $285,600.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 21,043 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,312,900. This represents a 4.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 5,289 shares of company stock worth $1,555,741. Corporate insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Wabtec from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Wabtec from $315.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Wall Street Zen downgraded Wabtec from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 2nd. KeyCorp raised their price objective on Wabtec from $308.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Stephens lifted their price objective on Wabtec from $330.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $328.90.

Wabtec Company Profile

Wabtec Corporation (NYSE: WAB), also known as Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies, supplies equipment, systems and services for the freight rail and passenger transit industries. Its products include locomotives, braking and train control systems, propulsion equipment, and components designed to support rail safety and performance. The company also provides aftermarket services, including maintenance, modernization, parts and digital solutions for rail operators. Its offerings serve freight railroads, transit agencies and other customers in the global rail industry.