Park Edge Advisors LLC Purchases Shares of 1,909 Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Park Edge Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 1,909 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $700,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of CAT. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $1,660,560,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar by 28,603.5% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,494,018 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,417,360,000 after purchasing an additional 1,488,813 shares during the period. Capital Wealth Planning LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar by 27,495.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 1,182,453 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $349,616,000 after purchasing an additional 1,178,168 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Caterpillar by 19.4% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,264,635 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $947,875,000 after purchasing an additional 529,420 shares during the period. Finally, Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich raised its stake in Caterpillar by 5,293.1% during the 4th quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 482,360 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $142,620,000 after purchasing an additional 473,416 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on CAT shares. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price on the stock. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Wednesday, June 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $380.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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, April 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $329.63.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CAT traded up $2.85 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $330.61. The company had a trading volume of 1,352,181 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,422,689. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $338.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $330.08. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $223.76 and a 12 month high of $382.01. The firm has a market cap of $161.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.93, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.12.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.07 billion. As a group, analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business 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. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 22nd. This is a boost from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.48%.

Caterpillar announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, June 12th that permits the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to reacquire up to 12.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan purchased 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $337.39 per share, for a total transaction of $168,695.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,738 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,943.82. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider now owns 71,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,380,943.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $337.39 per share, with a total value of $168,695.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 5,738 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,935,943.82. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

About Caterpillar

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.