SteelPeak Wealth LLC Cuts Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

SteelPeak Wealth LLC reduced its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 61.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,827 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 19,225 shares during the period. SteelPeak Wealth LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $4,334,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of CAT. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Caterpillar by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 48,353,370 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $14,296,641,000 after purchasing an additional 129,216 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its stake in Caterpillar by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 29,029,953 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,583,372,000 after purchasing an additional 96,479 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,145,840 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,408,481,000 after purchasing an additional 179,908 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in Caterpillar by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,830,849 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,864,823,000 after acquiring an additional 47,258 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,660,560,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT traded up $5.64 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $333.10. 8,891,479 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,519,845. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $340.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $329.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $162.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.35. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $223.76 and a 12 month high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.07 billion. Equities analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, June 12th that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 22nd will be paid a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 22nd. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.69%. This is a boost from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is presently 25.46%.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total transaction of $512,720.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 20,023 shares in the company, valued at $6,807,820. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total transaction of $512,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 20,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,807,820. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.90, for a total transaction of $7,797,194.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 71,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,380,943.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on CAT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $293.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Raymond James initiated coverage on Caterpillar in a research report on Friday. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Truist Financial started coverage on Caterpillar in a report on Thursday, March 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $329.63.

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.