Wall Street Zen Downgrades Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) to Hold

Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) was downgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Sunday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Susquehanna set a $300.00 price target on Wabtec in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Wolfe Research upgraded Wabtec from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $245.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Wabtec in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Citigroup upped their price target on Wabtec from $258.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $315.00 price objective on shares of Wabtec in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Wabtec presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $269.00.

Wabtec Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of NYSE:WAB opened at $262.77 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $231.97 and a 200 day moving average of $210.47. The company has a market cap of $44.81 billion, a PE ratio of 38.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.01. Wabtec has a 12-month low of $151.81 and a 12-month high of $265.88. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The transportation company reported $2.10 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.86 billion. Wabtec had a net margin of 10.48% and a return on equity of 14.12%. The firm’s revenue was up 14.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.68 EPS. Wabtec has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.050-10.450 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Wabtec will post 8.54 EPS for the current year.

Wabtec announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 11th that allows the company to repurchase $1.20 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the transportation company to repurchase up to 2.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Wabtec

In related news, EVP Gregory Sbrocco sold 952 shares of Wabtec stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $258.43, for a total value of $246,025.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 21,159 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,468,120.37. This trade represents a 4.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP David L. Deninno sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.62, for a total value of $1,073,100.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 50,450 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,827,579. This trade represents a 9.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 20,125 shares of company stock worth $4,591,336 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wabtec

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WAB. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Wabtec by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,930,893 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $4,172,532,000 after acquiring an additional 493,437 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of Wabtec by 20.3% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,965,503 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,700,238,000 after purchasing an additional 1,344,744 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Wabtec by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,658,040 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,634,609,000 after purchasing an additional 197,610 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Wabtec by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,366,157 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $928,249,000 after buying an additional 38,029 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings 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 buying an additional 116,329 shares in the last quarter. 91.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.