JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has $191.83 Million Stock Holdings in Wabtec $WAB

JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced its position in Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) by 37.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 956,915 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 570,487 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned 0.56% of Wabtec worth $191,834,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in WAB. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Wabtec by 2.5% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,930,893 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $4,172,532,000 after purchasing an additional 493,437 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Wabtec by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,304,183 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $662,390,000 after purchasing an additional 116,329 shares during the period. Boston Partners boosted its stake in shares of Wabtec by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,304,832 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $462,057,000 after purchasing an additional 43,376 shares during the last quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Wabtec by 68.6% during the 3rd 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, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in shares of Wabtec by 24.0% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,974,257 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $393,252,000 after buying an additional 381,728 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Rafael Santana sold 1,163 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.10, for a total transaction of $282,725.30. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 190,744 shares in the company, valued at $46,369,866.40. This trade represents a 0.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Nalin Jain sold 7,936 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.09, for a total transaction of $2,095,818.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 6,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,680,668.76. The trade was a 55.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 31,512 shares of company stock worth $8,160,028. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on WAB shares. KeyCorp increased their price target on Wabtec from $240.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Citigroup increased their target price on Wabtec from $258.00 to $283.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Wall Street Zen cut Wabtec from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Wolfe Research raised Wabtec from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $245.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $315.00 price target on shares of Wabtec in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $269.00.

Wabtec Stock Performance

Shares of Wabtec stock opened at $238.00 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $243.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $217.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The company has a market capitalization of $40.58 billion, a PE ratio of 34.85, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.99. Wabtec has a 12 month low of $151.81 and a 12 month high of $266.27.

Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The transportation company reported $2.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $2.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.86 billion. Wabtec had a return on equity of 14.12% and a net margin of 10.48%.The company’s revenue was up 14.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.68 earnings per share. Wabtec has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.050-10.450 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Wabtec will post 8.54 EPS for the current year.

Wabtec declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 11th that permits the company to buyback $1.20 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the transportation company to repurchase up to 2.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wabtec Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th were paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 17th. This is a positive change from Wabtec’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Wabtec’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.16%.

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.