Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Sells 3,594 Shares of Wabtec $WAB

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans reduced its stake in shares of Wabtec (NYSE:WAB) by 20.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 14,072 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 3,594 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Wabtec were worth $2,821,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Wabtec by 2.5% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,930,893 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $4,172,532,000 after buying an additional 493,437 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Wabtec by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,288,014 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $893,830,000 after acquiring an additional 30,489 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its stake in Wabtec by 9.0% in the second quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,261,456 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $471,410,000 after acquiring an additional 186,248 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in Wabtec by 24.0% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,974,257 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $393,252,000 after acquiring an additional 381,728 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Wabtec during the second quarter valued at approximately $347,194,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.69% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Rafael Santana sold 1,798 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.17, for a total value of $381,481.66. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 125,941 shares in the company, valued at $26,720,901.97. This represents a 1.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Rogerio Mendonca sold 2,019 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $214.51, for a total value of $433,095.69. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 9,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,041,277.16. This represents a 17.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 21,641 shares of company stock worth $4,609,349 in the last quarter. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Wabtec from $257.00 to $264.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Wabtec from $215.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Wabtec from $228.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Wabtec in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Wolfe Research raised shares of Wabtec from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $245.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $241.00.

Wabtec Trading Down 0.7%

NYSE:WAB opened at $244.62 on Tuesday. Wabtec has a 52 week low of $151.81 and a 52 week high of $248.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 1.42. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $223.17 and its 200-day moving average is $205.77. The firm has a market cap of $41.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.01.

Wabtec Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be issued a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. This is an increase from Wabtec’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Wabtec’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.53%.

Wabtec 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.