<div id="readability-page-1"><p>Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY - Get Free Report) announced its earnings results on Thursday. The bank reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.13, Zacks reports. Cathay General Bancorp had a net margin of 22.26% and a return on equity of 10.60%.</p><div><p><span></span><span>Get <strong>Cathay General Bancorp</strong> alerts:</span></p></div><h2>Cathay General Bancorp Trading Down 0.3%</h2><ul><li>Regional Bank Buybacks: 5 Institutions Making Big Moves</li></ul><p>Shares of NASDAQ:CATY traded down $0.14 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $52.30. 326,354 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 350,775. The business's 50-day moving average price is $49.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $48.32. Cathay General Bancorp has a 12 month low of $36.06 and a 12 month high of $53.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.08 and a beta of 0.85. </p><h2>Cathay General Bancorp Announces Dividend</h2><p>The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st were paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. Cathay General Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.41%. </p><h2>Analysts Set New Price Targets</h2><p>A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on CATY shares. Keefe, Bruyette &amp; Woods increased their price target on Cathay General Bancorp from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a &#34;market perform&#34; rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised Cathay General Bancorp from a &#34;sell&#34; rating to a &#34;hold&#34; rating in a report on Sunday, November 16th. DA Davidson raised their price target on Cathay General Bancorp from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a &#34;neutral&#34; rating in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings  reaffirmed a &#34;buy (b-)&#34; rating on shares of Cathay General Bancorp in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one  has assigned  a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cathay General Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of &#34;Hold&#34; and a consensus price target of $50.60.</p><p><b>View Our Latest Stock Analysis on CATY</b></p><h2>Insider Buying and Selling</h2><p>In other news, CEO Chang Liu sold 5,165 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.24, for a total transaction of $238,829.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 108,478 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,016,022.72. This trade represents a 4.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities &amp; Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Thomas M. Lo sold 1,000 shares of Cathay General Bancorp stock in a transaction on Monday, October 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.83, for a total transaction of $46,830.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 3,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $140,490. This trade represents a 25.00% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 38,755 shares of company stock worth $1,820,148 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own  4.85% of the company's stock. </p><h2>Institutional Trading of Cathay General Bancorp</h2><p>Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. bought a new position in  Cathay General Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth $345,000.  Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in shares of  Cathay General Bancorp in the third quarter valued at about $48,000.  Harvest Investment Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of  Cathay General Bancorp in the third quarter valued at about $427,000.  Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of  Cathay General Bancorp during the third quarter worth about $3,910,000.  Finally, Qube Research &amp; Technologies Ltd raised its position in shares of  Cathay General Bancorp by 674.4% during the third quarter. Qube Research &amp; Technologies Ltd now owns 93,282 shares of the bank's stock worth $4,478,000 after acquiring an additional 81,236 shares during the last quarter. 75.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. </p><h2>About Cathay General Bancorp</h2> (Get Free Report)<p>Cathay General Bancorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Los Angeles, California, trading on NASDAQ under the symbol CATY. Its principal subsidiary, Cathay Bank, provides a full suite of financial services to commercial, institutional and retail clients. As a community-focused institution, the company emphasizes relationship banking and tailored solutions for businesses and individuals.  </p><p>Founded in 1962 by a group of Chinese American entrepreneurs, Cathay has expanded from a single branch operation in downtown Los Angeles into one of the largest Asian-American banks in the United States.</p><h2>Featured Stories</h2><ul><li>Five stocks we like better than Cathay General Bancorp</li><li>The Crash Has Already Started (Most Just Don’t See It Yet)</li><li>Trump’s AI Secret: 100X Faster Than Nvidia</li><li>New gold price target</li><li>How a Family Trust May Be Able To Help Preserve Your Wealth</li><li>Melt-up warning</li></ul><p><img src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/EarningsChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5BU0RBUSZTeW1ib2w9Q0FUWQ?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="650" height="325" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/EarningsChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5BU0RBUSZTeW1ib2w9Q0FUWQ"/></p><p><em>This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.</em></p><h2>Should You Invest $1,000 in Cathay General Bancorp Right Now?</h2><p>Before you consider Cathay General Bancorp, you'll want to hear this.</p><p>MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Cathay General Bancorp wasn't on the list.</p><p>While Cathay General Bancorp currently has a Hold rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.</p><p>View The Five Stocks Here</p>                  </div>

CATY

<p>Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) reported quarterly earnings of $1.33 per share, exceeding estimates of $1.20. The bank achieved a return on equity of 10.60% and a net margin of 22.26%. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.34 per share. Analysts have set new price targets, with Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raising theirs to $55.00. Insider trading activity included CEO Chang Liu selling shares, and institutional investors have been active in buying and selling the stock. The current market capitalization is $3.56 billion.</p>

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) Announces Earnings Results