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.

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Cathay General Bancorp stock research in summary

cathaybank.com

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 64 (better than 64% compared with investment alternatives), Cathay General Bancorp (Regional Banks, USA) shares have above-average financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of Cathay General Bancorp are low in value (priced high) with a consolidated Value Rank of 44 (worse than 56% of alternatives). But they show above-average growth (Growth Rank of 51) and are safely financed (Safety Rank of 75, which means below-average debt burdens). ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 64, is a buy recommendation based on Cathay General Bancorp's financial characteristics. Investors looking for growth and low financial risk may find this stock attractive. While the company Cathay General Bancorp exhibits low value (Obermatt Value Rank of 44), which means that the stock price is rather high, it also demonstrates above-average growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 51). This is a typical case, as high-growth companies are often expensive. Good financing practices (Obermatt Safety Rank of 75) are a double-edged sword: if the company continues growing, low debt limits shareholder returns. But if the company increases its debt, it will also increase risk. In other words, this is an investment on the safer side, despite the above-average price (low value). 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	44
Growth Rank	51
Safety Rank	75
Combined Rank	64

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

5-Jun-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	44
GROWTH
GROWTH	52	78	33	51
SAFETY
SAFETY	67	85	67	75
SENTIMENT
SENTIMENT	39	74	59	^new
360° VIEW
360° VIEW	57	88	55	^new

Most recent update of the stock research: 5-Jun-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	44
GROWTH
GROWTH	52	78	33	51
SAFETY
SAFETY	67	85	67	75
COMBINED
COMBINED	53	82	44	64

Last update of combined financial performance: 5-Jun-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 44 (worse than 56% 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 half of the indicators below and half above average for Cathay General Bancorp. Price-to-Profit (also referred to as price-earnings, P/E) is 67 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is lower than for 67% of comparable companies, indicating a good 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 44, which means that the stock price is lower as regards to invested capital than for 44% of comparable investments. On the other hand, Price-to-Sales is less favorable than 81% of alternatives (only 19% of peers have an even less favorable ratio). The same is valid for dividend yield, which is lower than 50% 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 44, is a hold recommendation based on Cathay General Bancorp's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. This is a puzzling picture, because it means that profits are high while dividends are low. Since the stock price is low compared with invested capital but high in respect to expected revenues, it means that the company has more invested capital than peers for generating the same amount of revenue. Since profits are higher, it could be a "cash cow" situation (using the classic Boston Consulting BCG matrix naming convention) where the company is on a downward trend, still living from the profits of past products. As the company pays low dividends, it may harbor the opinion that a turnaround is possible, and it rather invests the cash than pay it out to shareholders, thus sealing the company's fate early. Any investment optimism should only be a buy trigger once thorough research is completed. 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 especially important 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	19
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)	62	70	62	67
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)	24	36	47	44
DIVIDEND YIELD
DIVIDEND YIELD	61	34	51	50
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE	37	32	43	44

Last update of Value Rank: 5-Jun-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 51 (better than 51% compared with alternatives), Cathay General Bancorp shows an above-average growth dynamic in its industry. Investors also speak of positive momentum. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with three out of four metrics below average for Cathay General Bancorp. While Profit Growth has a good rank of 52, as professionals currently expect the company to grow its profits more than 52% of its competitors, all other growth indicators are below market averages. Sales Growth has a rank of 49, which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow less than 51% of its competitors, while Capital Growth has a rank of 30 and Stock Returns have been below market median, with a rank of 47 (53% of alternative investments were better). ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 51, is a buy recommendation for growth and momentum investors. While revenue growth and capital growth are good growth momentum indicators, profit is less reliable, because profits may increase due to cost-cutting measures which typically indicate negative growth momentum. "You can save a dollar only once" is the saying about such situations. Growth Investors should look at company priorities closely if they are interested in growth, because the increase in profits is not usually an indicator of growth, and stock prices have been below market, too. 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 is limited here. ...read more

GROWTH METRICS	2022	2023	2024	2025
REVENUE GROWTH
REVENUE GROWTH	63	48	53	49
PROFIT GROWTH
PROFIT GROWTH	37	67	34	52
CAPITAL GROWTH
CAPITAL GROWTH	47	63	31	30
STOCK RETURNS
STOCK RETURNS	51	83	41	47
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH	52	78	33	51

Last update of Growth Rank: 5-Jun-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 75 (better than 75% compared with alternatives) for 2025, the company Cathay General Bancorp has safe financing practices, which means that their overall debt burden is low. 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, with two out of three indicators above average for Cathay General Bancorp. Leverage is at a rank of 88, meaning the company has a below-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has less debt than 88% of its competitors. Liquidity is also good at a rank of 64, meaning the company generates more profit to service its debt than 64% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is on the safer side when it comes to debt service. But Refinancing is lower at a rank of 45, which means that the portion of the debt that is about to be refinanced is above-average. It has more debt in the refinancing stage than 55% of its competitors. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 75 (better than 75% compared with alternatives), Cathay General Bancorp has a financing structure that is significantly safer than that of its competitors. The refinancing issues could be a short-term problem, especially if the company has reputation issues. Banks and investors don't like to refinance debt if there are clouds on the horizon. For this reason, investors should look at the refinancing environment for Cathay General Bancorp. Does it look safe that debt that is coming due can be covered with new debt? If that is the case, then the financing situation of the company is on the safer side. If not, it may be better to wait until refinancing has been completed and the Refinancing rank is good again. Investors may have a short-term debt challenge with Cathay General Bancorp and 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	88
REFINANCING
REFINANCING	60	49	55	45
LIQUIDITY
LIQUIDITY	37	66	58	64
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY	67	85	67	75

Last update of Safety Rank: 5-Jun-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: 5-Jun-2025. Stock analysis on sentiment metrics: The higher the rank, the more positive the sentiment for Cathay General Bancorp.
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