Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $1.30 on May 20th

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, April 10th, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of 1.30 per share by the industrial products company on Monday, May 20th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th.

Caterpillar has increased its dividend payment by an average of 6.7% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 29 years. Caterpillar has a dividend payout ratio of 23.1% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Caterpillar to earn $22.88 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $5.20 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 22.7%.

Caterpillar Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $359.65 on Wednesday. Caterpillar has a 12-month low of $204.04 and a 12-month high of $382.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $179.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.86, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $344.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $296.35.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $5.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.76 by $0.47. The company had revenue of $17.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.06 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 56.99% and a net margin of 15.41%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.86 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Caterpillar will post 21.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 350 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $323.37 per share, for a total transaction of $113,179.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,693,812.06. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 350 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $323.37 per share, with a total value of $113,179.50. Following the purchase, the director now owns 5,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,693,812.06. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 4,575 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.80, for a total value of $1,508,835.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 23,474 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,741,725.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 45,769 shares of company stock valued at $14,509,306 in the last 90 days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Caterpillar

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Aspect Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 730.8% in the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 108 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 272.4% during the first quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 108 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Capital Advisors Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on CAT shares. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Monday, January 8th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $270.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $285.00 to $293.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $255.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $307.56.

Caterpillar Company Profile

Caterpillar Inc manufactures and sells construction and mining equipment, off-highway diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, and diesel-electric locomotives in worldwide. Its Construction Industries segment offers asphalt pavers, compactors, road reclaimers, forestry machines, cold planers, material handlers, track-type tractors, excavators, telehandlers, motor graders, and pipelayers; compact track, wheel, track-type, backhoe, and skid steer loaders; and related parts and tools.