Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) Earns Buy Rating from Jefferies Financial Group

Wabtec (NYSE:WAB)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reissued by equities research analysts at Jefferies Financial Group in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $290.00 target price on the transportation company’s stock, down from their prior target price of $300.00. Jefferies Financial Group’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 19.37% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on the company. Susquehanna set a $300.00 target price on Wabtec in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $315.00 price target on shares of Wabtec in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Wall Street Zen lowered Wabtec from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. KeyCorp increased their target price on Wabtec from $240.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on Wabtec from $258.00 to $283.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $272.08.

Wabtec Stock Performance

Shares of Wabtec stock traded up $5.57 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $242.94. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 216,782 shares, compared to its average volume of 828,220. Wabtec has a one year low of $151.81 and a one year high of $266.27. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $245.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $220.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market cap of $41.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.99.

Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The transportation company reported $2.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.02. Wabtec had a net margin of 10.48% and a return on equity of 14.12%. The business had revenue of $2.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.86 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.68 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Wabtec has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.050-10.450 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Wabtec will post 8.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wabtec announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 11th that allows the company to repurchase $1.20 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the transportation company to repurchase up to 2.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Wabtec news, insider Sameer Gaur sold 1,150 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.62, for a total transaction of $302,013.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 12,017 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,155,904.54. The trade was a 8.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Nalin Jain sold 7,936 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.09, for a total value of $2,095,818.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 6,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,680,668.76. The trade was a 55.50% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 31,512 shares of company stock worth $8,160,028 over the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wabtec

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WAB. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Wabtec during the 2nd quarter worth about $268,000. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in shares of Wabtec in the second quarter valued at approximately $865,000. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Wabtec by 4.2% during the second quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 2,442 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $511,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Wabtec by 14.2% during the second quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 4,028 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $843,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in Wabtec by 6.5% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 973 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $204,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.69% of the company’s stock.

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.