Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The bank reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.13, Zacks reports. Cathay General Bancorp had a net margin of 22.26% and a return on equity of 10.60%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.12 EPS.

Cathay General Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ CATY traded down $0.14 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $52.30. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 326,354 shares, compared to its average volume of 350,775. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.08 and a beta of 0.85. The company’s 50-day moving average is $49.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $48.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04. Cathay General Bancorp has a 1-year low of $36.06 and a 1-year high of $53.38.

Cathay General Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 11th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st were issued a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. Cathay General Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.41%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Thomas M. Lo sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.83, for a total value of $46,830.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 3,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $140,490. The trade was a 25.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Dunson K. Cheng sold 7,590 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.81, for a total transaction of $362,877.90. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 138,360 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,614,991.60. The trade was a 5.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 38,755 shares of company stock worth $1,820,148 over the last three months. 4.85% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CATY. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. acquired a new stake in Cathay General Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth about $345,000. Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp during the third quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Harvest Investment Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp in the third quarter valued at approximately $427,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp in the third quarter valued at approximately $3,910,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp by 674.4% during the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 93,282 shares of the bank’s stock worth $4,478,000 after purchasing an additional 81,236 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on CATY shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Cathay General Bancorp in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen raised Cathay General Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, November 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Cathay General Bancorp from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, DA Davidson increased their price target on shares of Cathay General Bancorp from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $50.60.

About Cathay General Bancorp

Cathay General Bancorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Los Angeles, California, trading on NASDAQ under the symbol CATY. Its principal subsidiary, Cathay Bank, provides a full suite of financial services to commercial, institutional and retail clients. As a community-focused institution, the company emphasizes relationship banking and tailored solutions for businesses and individuals.

Founded in 1962 by a group of Chinese American entrepreneurs, Cathay has expanded from a single branch operation in downtown Los Angeles into one of the largest Asian-American banks in the United States.