Oak Thistle LLC Purchases New Position in Wabtec $WAB

Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 9,755 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,082,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV lifted its stake in shares of Wabtec by 47.7% in the fourth quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 8,710 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,859,000 after buying an additional 2,811 shares in the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd bought a new position in shares of Wabtec in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,276,000. Cidel Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Wabtec in the fourth quarter worth approximately $201,000. Sowell Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Wabtec by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC now owns 2,662 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $568,000 after buying an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC lifted its stake in shares of Wabtec by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,143 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $457,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Wabtec

In other Wabtec news, insider Nalin Jain sold 7,936 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were 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 owned 6,364 shares in the company, valued at $1,680,668.76. This trade represents a 55.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Sameer Gaur sold 1,150 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.62, for a total transaction of $302,013.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 12,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,155,904.54. This trade represents a 8.73% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 31,512 shares of company stock valued at $8,160,028. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wabtec Stock Up 0.8%

WAB opened at $255.96 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $248.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $223.03. Wabtec has a twelve month low of $157.18 and a twelve month high of $266.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.48, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.99.

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

Wabtec declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 11th that allows the company to buyback $1.20 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the transportation company to reacquire up to 2.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wabtec Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. This is a boost from Wabtec’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 17th. Wabtec’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on WAB. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Wabtec in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Wabtec from $224.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $290.00 price objective (down from $300.00) on shares of Wabtec in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Stephens boosted their price objective on shares of Wabtec from $230.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Wabtec from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 14th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $272.08.

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.