KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Buys Shares of 14,200 Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 14,200 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $676,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in CATY. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp by 332.3% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 25,313 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,087,000 after buying an additional 19,458 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Cathay General Bancorp by 17.7% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 52,236 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,509,000 after acquiring an additional 7,837 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Cathay General Bancorp by 1.2% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,713,650 shares of the bank's stock worth $73,615,000 after purchasing an additional 20,840 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Cathay General Bancorp by 104.3% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 145,690 shares of the bank's stock worth $6,257,000 after acquiring an additional 74,394 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Cathay General Bancorp by 6.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 156,125 shares of the bank's stock valued at $6,706,000 after purchasing an additional 9,724 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.01% of the company's stock.

Cathay General Bancorp Price Performance

CATY stock traded down $0.52 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $38.10. The company had a trading volume of 1,358,708 shares, compared to its average volume of 342,904. Cathay General Bancorp has a 1-year low of $33.88 and a 1-year high of $55.29. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $45.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $46.72. 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 company has a market capitalization of $2.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.62 and a beta of 0.99.

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The bank reported $1.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.02. Cathay General Bancorp had a net margin of 20.57% and a return on equity of 10.70%. Equities research analysts expect that Cathay General Bancorp will post 4.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Cathay General Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 27th were paid a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.57%. Cathay General Bancorp's payout ratio is 34.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on CATY. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on 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. Stephens reduced their target price 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. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Cathay General Bancorp from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $50.80.

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.