Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and ten have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $272.0833.

Several research firms recently commented on WAB. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Wabtec from $224.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Wabtec from $215.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $315.00 price objective on shares of Wabtec in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $290.00 target price (down from $300.00) on shares of Wabtec in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their target price on Wabtec from $240.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th.

Wabtec Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE WAB opened at $253.98 on Friday. Wabtec has a 52 week low of $151.81 and a 52 week high of $266.27. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $247.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $221.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.22 billion, a PE ratio of 37.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 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. The business had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.86 billion. Wabtec had a net margin of 10.48% and a return on equity of 14.12%. The company’s revenue was up 14.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.68 EPS. Wabtec has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.050-10.450 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Wabtec will post 8.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wabtec Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 17th. This is an increase from Wabtec’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Wabtec’s dividend payout ratio is 18.16%.

Wabtec announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.20 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the transportation company to buy up to 2.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Gina Trombley sold 4,013 shares of the company’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 transaction, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO John A. Olin sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.30, for a total transaction of $2,896,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 60,487 shares in the company, valued at $15,926,227.10. This trade represents a 15.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 31,512 shares of company stock worth $8,160,028. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Wabtec

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Wabtec in the 4th quarter valued at about $409,039,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in Wabtec by 20.3% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,965,503 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,700,238,000 after buying an additional 1,344,744 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in Wabtec by 55.5% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,069,340 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $659,939,000 after buying an additional 1,095,083 shares during the period. Farallon Capital Management LLC increased its position in Wabtec by 68.6% during the third quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 2,205,098 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $442,056,000 after buying an additional 896,900 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in Wabtec by 360.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 885,197 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $188,945,000 after buying an additional 692,773 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.69% of the company’s stock.

Wabtec Company Profile

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.