Bank of America Increases Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies (NYSE:WAB) Price Target to $162.00

Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies (NYSE:WAB) had its price target raised by Bank of America from $156.00 to $162.00 in a report issued on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the transportation company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Redburn Atlantic lowered shares of Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $135.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies from $133.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Stephens increased their price objective on shares of Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies from $153.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies from a hold rating to a buy rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $115.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $146.91.

Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of WAB opened at $144.27 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.20. The company has a market capitalization of $25.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.92, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.40. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $142.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $126.43. Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies has a 1 year low of $91.89 and a 1 year high of $151.00.

Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies (NYSE:WAB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 14th. The transportation company reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.58 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $2.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.48 billion. Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies had a net margin of 8.42% and a return on equity of 10.34%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.30 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies will post 6.73 EPS for the current year.

Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Investors of record on Friday, February 23rd were issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 22nd. This is a boost from Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Rafael Santana sold 40,219 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.62, for a total value of $5,655,595.78. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 123,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,298,931.78. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies news, CEO Rafael Santana sold 40,219 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.62, for a total transaction of $5,655,595.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 123,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,298,931.78. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP David L. Deninno sold 6,607 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.61, for a total transaction of $895,975.27. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 65,535 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,887,201.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 63,964 shares of company stock valued at $8,924,584 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. First Hawaiian Bank grew its stake in shares of Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 3,699 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $539,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Watchman Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Watchman Group Inc. now owns 28,921 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $3,073,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions Corp. acquired a new position in shares of Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, WASHINGTON TRUST Co grew its stake in shares of Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 157,051 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $16,690,000 after purchasing an additional 760 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.69% of the company’s stock.

About Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies

Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides technology-based locomotives, equipment, systems, and services for the freight rail and passenger transit industries worldwide. It offers diesel-electric, battery, and liquid natural gas-powered locomotives; engines, electric motors, and propulsion systems; and marine and mining products.