Wabtec $WAB Stock Sold by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 365,545 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 12,252 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Wabtec were worth $104,977,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Wabtec during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,741,077,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Wabtec during the 2nd quarter worth $212,692,000. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new position in Wabtec during the 2nd quarter worth $207,228,000. Junto Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Wabtec in the 2nd quarter worth $142,007,000. Finally, Amundi grew its stake in shares of Wabtec by 43.9% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 1,580,919 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $426,216,000 after acquiring an additional 482,323 shares in the last quarter. 91.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Rafael Santana sold 1,087 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.79, for a total transaction of $317,175.73. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 116,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,892,867.45. This trade represents a 0.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Gregory Sbrocco sold 952 shares of Wabtec stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $285,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 21,043 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,312,900. This represents a 4.33% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 5,289 shares of company stock valued at $1,555,741. 0.57% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WAB has been the subject of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Wabtec from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Monday, October 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Wabtec from $315.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, September 21st. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Wabtec from $315.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Wabtec from $284.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Wabtec from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, August 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Wabtec has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $320.18.

Wabtec Stock Up 2.6%

WAB stock opened at $286.91 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $285.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $267.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Wabtec has a 1-year low of $194.93 and a 1-year high of $306.64. The stock has a market cap of $48.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.92.

Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 21st. The transportation company reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.73 by $0.10. Wabtec had a return on equity of 15.72% and a net margin of 11.20%. The firm had revenue of $3.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.32 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Wabtec will post 10.97 EPS for the current year.

Wabtec Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 17th will be issued a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 17th. Wabtec’s payout ratio is 15.40%.

About Wabtec

Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corporation, doing business as Wabtec (NYSE: WAB), is a global provider of equipment, systems, digital solutions and services for the freight and passenger rail industries. The company develops technologies intended to improve the safety, efficiency, reliability and sustainability of rail transportation.

Wabtec’s products and services include locomotives, locomotive components and modernization programs, braking systems, train control and signaling equipment, power and propulsion systems, and advanced digital solutions.