Fact based stock research
Cathay General Bancorp (NasdaqGS:CATY)

US1491501045

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For every stock, we judge its performance against its peers and rank it on a scale of 1 to 100. The higher the rank, the better the stock performs than its peers. And, we do this for six investment strategies:
Value - shows how good of a value the stock is. Green is "inexpensive"; red is "expensive".

Growth - shows a company's growth potential. Green is "high growth" expected; red is "tough times ahead".

Safety - relates to the amount of debt a company has. Green is low debt level; red is high debt level.

Combined Financial - this isn't an average of the first three ranks but rather a consolidated view across several financial indicators. Green = good; red = tread carefully.

(NEW) Sentiment - quantifies professional analyst ratings and holdings as well as market pulse. Green = positive sentiment; red = skepticism (Only available to Premium Subscribers).

(NEW) 360° View - the ultimate rating with all financial and non-financial indicators.

Cathay General Bancorp stock research in summary

cathaybank.com

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 47 (worse than 53% compared with investment alternatives), Cathay General Bancorp (Regional Banks, USA) shares have somewhat below-average financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of Cathay General Bancorp are low in value (priced high) with a consolidated Value Rank of 37 (worse than 63% of alternatives) and show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 33) but are safely financed (Safety Rank of 74), which means low debt burdens. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 47, is a hold recommendation based on Cathay General Bancorp's financial characteristics. As the company Cathay General Bancorp's critical financial metrics exhibit below-average performance, such as low value (Obermatt Value Rank of 37) and low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 33), it is a somewhat questionable stock investment, where the risk of paying too much for the shares is significant, unless the company has an exceptionally bright future. In this case, good financing practices (Obermatt Safety Rank of 74) are a positive sign, because it may allow the company to weather challenging times until the hoped-for cash flows materialize. This may be true for high-tech or biotechnology companies with enough cash to sustain prolonged business development. If they own properties that only provide cash flows in the future, the stock may look excessively expensive and unattractive today. In such cases, the Obermatt Method has limited value, as it is based on facts we can observe today. If the facts lie all in the future, stock investing becomes guesswork, and this should only be a driver in a limited number of investments that account for a small fraction of a safe portfolio. Obermatt Premium subscribers can further check the stock’s Sentiment Ranks, which also flow into the Obermatt 360° View for investors. ...read more

Latest Obermatt Ranks


360° View^new
Sentiment Rank^new
Value Rank	37
Growth Rank	33
Safety Rank	74
Combined Rank	47

Country	USA
Industry	Regional Banks
Index	NASDAQ, S&P MIDCAP
Size class	Medium

27-Feb-2025. Stock data may be delayed. Log in or sign up to get the most recent research.

Further information

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Review the performance ranks of the individual metrics that form each investment strategy.

Research History: Cathay General Bancorp

RESEARCH HISTORY	2022	2023	2024	2025
VALUE
VALUE	37	32	43	37
GROWTH
GROWTH	52	78	33	33
SAFETY
SAFETY	67	85	67	74
SENTIMENT
SENTIMENT	39	74	59	^new
360° VIEW
360° VIEW	57	88	55	^new

Most recent update of the stock research: 27-Feb-2025. Financial reporting date used for calculating ranks: 31-Dec-2024. Stock research history is based on the Obermatt Method. The higher the rank, the better Cathay General Bancorp is in the corresponding investment strategy.
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Combined financial peformance in Detail

RESEARCH HISTORY	2022	2023	2024	2025
VALUE
VALUE	37	32	43	37
GROWTH
GROWTH	52	78	33	33
SAFETY
SAFETY	67	85	67	74
COMBINED
COMBINED	53	82	44	47

Last update of combined financial performance: 27-Feb-2025. Stock analysis on combined financial performance: The higher the rank of Cathay General Bancorp the better the performance.

Value Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 37 (worse than 63% compared with alternatives), Cathay General Bancorp shares are more expensive than the average comparable stock. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with three out of four indicators below average for Cathay General Bancorp. Only Price-to-Profit (also referred to as price-earnings, P/E) indicates good stock value with a rank of 54, which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is lower than for 54% of comparable companies, indicating a good value concerning Cathay General Bancorp's profit levels. But Price-to-Sales is 21 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is higher than for 79% of comparable companies, indicating a low value concerning Cathay General Bancorp's profit levels. The same is valid for Price-to-Book Capital (also referred to as market-to-book ratio) with a Price-to-Book Rank of 47 and for dividend yield, which is lower than for 51% of comparable companies, making the stock more expensive as regards to the company's expected dividend payouts. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 37, is a hold recommendation based on Cathay General Bancorp's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. Can we rely on only one good value indicator? Only if we know the company well. In this case, a high Price-to-Profit Rank, while Price-to-Sales and Price-to-Book are both below the market typical levels, means that the company can charge higher prices for its products and needs less capital to produce them. If this is sustainable, then Cathay General Bancorp is a good investment because profits count most in enterprise valuations. The low dividend yield indicates that the company is confident it can do something with the generated cash that is more valuable than paying the profits out to the shareholders in the form of dividends. We recommend further analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks, including the 360° View, before making an investment decision, which is essential in this case, as the financial indicators are inconclusive. ...read more

VALUE METRICS	2022	2023	2024	2025
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)	21	19	21	21
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)	62	70	62	54
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)	24	36	47	47
DIVIDEND YIELD
DIVIDEND YIELD	61	34	51	49
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE	37	32	43	37

Last update of Value Rank: 27-Feb-2025. Stock analysis on value ratios: The higher the rank, the lower the value ratio of Cathay General Bancorp; except for dividend yield where the rank is higher, the higher the yield.

Growth Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 33 (better than 33% compared with alternatives), Cathay General Bancorp shows a below-average growth dynamic in its industry. There is limited momentum in this company. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with three out of four indicators below-average for Cathay General Bancorp. While Sales Growth ranks at 53, professionals currently expect the company to grow more than 53% of its competitors, while all other growth ranks are below the market median. Profit Growth has a rank of 34, which means that, currently, professionals expect the company to grow its profits less than 66% of its competitors, and Capital Growth has a low rank of 31. Historic stock returns were also below average with a current Stock Returns rank of 39 which means that the stock returns have recently been below 61% of alternative investments. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 33, is a hold recommendation for growth and momentum investors. If revenues are expected to increase, but all other growth indicators are negative, the company may be investing in future growth through means not visible in the balance sheet and thus not reflected in capital growth. The fact that Stock Returns have been below market doesn't mean that much, as it may be due to overly optimistic investor behavior in the past, which has been corrected to a more reasonable level recently. If that were the case, a positive Value Rank would be a reason to invest because the company is still expected to grow, while stock prices are now at a more reasonable level. While momentum is a popular investment factor, the value aspect might be the more important one, in the longer term. We recommend analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks to arrive at a 360° View of the stock purchase case, especially since the growth performance isn't stellar here. ...read more

GROWTH METRICS	2022	2023	2024	2025
REVENUE GROWTH
REVENUE GROWTH	63	48	53	53
PROFIT GROWTH
PROFIT GROWTH	37	67	34	34
CAPITAL GROWTH
CAPITAL GROWTH	47	63	31	31
STOCK RETURNS
STOCK RETURNS	51	83	41	39
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH	52	78	33	33

Last update of Growth Rank: 27-Feb-2025. Stock analysis on growth metrics: The higher the rank, the higher the growth and returns of Cathay General Bancorp.

Safety Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 74 (better than 74% compared with alternatives), the company Cathay General Bancorp has financing practices on the safer side, which mean that their overall debt burden is lower than average. This doesn't mean that the business of Cathay General Bancorp is safe, it only means that the company is on the safer side regarding possible bankruptcy, assuming that public reporting is correct. The Safety Rank is based on consolidating three financing indicators, where all three are above average for Cathay General Bancorp. Leverage is at 68, meaning the company has a below-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has less debt than 68% of its competitors. Refinancing is at a rank of 55, meaning that the portion of the debt about to be refinanced is below average. It has less debt in the refinancing stage than 55% of its competitors. Finally, Liquidity is also good at a rank of 67, which means that the company generates more profit to service its debt than 67% of its competitors. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 74 (better than 74% compared with alternatives), Cathay General Bancorp has a financing structure that is safer than that of its competitors. These three positive financing indicators signal that the company is less likely to default on its debt obligations. However, it also means that its shareholder returns will be more modest if things go well. A low safety means fewer troubles in downtimes and less upside in good times. Investors may not have a debt issue with Cathay General Bancorp but they should also compare Obermatt’s Value, Growth, and Sentiment Ranks before making a decision. ...read more

SAFETY METRICS	2022	2023	2024	2025
LEVERAGE
LEVERAGE	82	88	68	68
REFINANCING
REFINANCING	60	49	55	55
LIQUIDITY
LIQUIDITY	37	66	58	67
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY	67	85	67	74

Last update of Safety Rank: 27-Feb-2025. Stock analysis on safety metrics: The higher the rank, the lower the leverage of Cathay General Bancorp and the more cash is available to service its debt.

Sentiment Metrics in Detail

SENTIMENT	2022	2023	2024	2025
ANALYST OPINIONS
ANALYST OPINIONS	n/a	36	40	^new
OPINIONS CHANGE
OPINIONS CHANGE	50	75	50	^new
PRO HOLDINGS
PRO HOLDINGS	18	88	95	^new
MARKET PULSE
MARKET PULSE	88	27	34	^new
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT	39	74	59	^new

Last update of Sentiment Rank: 27-Feb-2025. Stock analysis on sentiment metrics: The higher the rank, the more positive the sentiment for Cathay General Bancorp.
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