Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Stock Position Decreased by Disciplined Equity Management Inc.

Disciplined Equity Management Inc. lowered its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 60 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar makes up 0.7% of Disciplined Equity Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Disciplined Equity Management Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,008,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in Caterpillar by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 10,695 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,919,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC raised its position in Caterpillar by 4.0% during the first quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC now owns 784 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $287,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Davis Investment Partners LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Davis Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,454 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $541,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Caterpillar by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Exchange Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,016 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $372,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 789 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $233,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of Caterpillar stock traded up $2.63 during trading on Thursday, reaching $331.11. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,016,449 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,695,066. The firm has a market cap of $161.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.12. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $337.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $331.44. 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 one year low of $223.76 and a one year high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.07 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 22nd. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.70%. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.48%.

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 buy up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Truist Financial started coverage on Caterpillar in a report on Thursday, March 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $293.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Friday, April 26th. StockNews.com lowered Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $329.63.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The stock was 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan bought 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $337.39 per share, for a total transaction of $168,695.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,738 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,943.82. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total value of $512,720.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 20,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,807,820. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar 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.