Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft Takes $448,000 Position in Wabtec $WAB

Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft purchased a new stake in Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 2,100 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $448,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in WAB. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in shares of Wabtec by 55.5% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,069,340 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $659,939,000 after purchasing an additional 1,095,083 shares in the last quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC grew its position in Wabtec by 68.6% in the third quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 2,205,098 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $442,056,000 after acquiring an additional 896,900 shares during the period. UBS Group AG grew its position in Wabtec by 194.2% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,033,304 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $207,146,000 after acquiring an additional 682,048 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in Wabtec by 76.3% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,229,270 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $245,534,000 after acquiring an additional 532,121 shares during the period. Finally, Junto Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Wabtec in the third quarter worth approximately $80,160,000. 91.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Wabtec news, CEO Rafael Santana sold 1,163 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.77, for a total value of $306,764.51. Following 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Gina Trombley sold 4,013 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.87, for a total value of $970,624.31. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 13,841 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,347,722.67. This represents a 22.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 91,729 shares of company stock valued at $24,387,500. 0.57% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wabtec Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of NYSE WAB opened at $264.29 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $44.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.38, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Wabtec has a 12-month low of $184.26 and a 12-month high of $275.84. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $255.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $235.42.

Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The transportation company reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.62 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $2.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.08 billion. Wabtec had a return on equity of 14.52% and a net margin of 10.52%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.28 earnings per share. Wabtec has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.250-10.650 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Wabtec will post 10.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wabtec announced that its board has authorized a share buyback 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 purchase up to 2.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wabtec Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 22nd will be paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 22nd. Wabtec’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on WAB shares. Stephens increased their price objective on Wabtec from $230.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Susquehanna reiterated a “positive” rating and issued a $305.00 price objective on shares of Wabtec in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $318.00 price objective on shares of Wabtec in a research report on Monday, April 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Wabtec from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $290.00 price objective (down from $300.00) on shares of Wabtec in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Wabtec has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $289.82.

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.