Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) has earned an average rating of “Hold” from the five analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $50.80.

CATY has been the subject of a number of research reports. Stephens reduced their price target on shares of Cathay General Bancorp from $60.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Piper Sandler reduced their target price 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. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Cathay General Bancorp from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd.

Cathay General Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of CATY opened at $43.28 on Wednesday. Cathay General Bancorp has a 1-year low of $33.88 and a 1-year high of $55.29. The stock has a market cap of $3.04 billion, a PE ratio of 10.93 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $46.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.71.

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The bank reported $1.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Cathay General Bancorp will post 4.47 EPS for the current year.

Cathay General Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th were issued a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.14%. Cathay General Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.34%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Cathay General Bancorp by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,293 shares of the bank’s stock worth $490,000 after purchasing an additional 544 shares in the last quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC raised its holdings in Cathay General Bancorp by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 55,191 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,628,000 after purchasing an additional 5,503 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in Cathay General Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $4,587,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp purchased a new position in Cathay General Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $212,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in Cathay General Bancorp by 16.7% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 174,176 shares of the bank’s stock worth $8,293,000 after purchasing an additional 24,871 shares in the last quarter. 75.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.