Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Stock Position Lowered by Advisory Alpha LLC

Advisory Alpha LLC lessened its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 10.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,486 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 399 shares during the quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,278,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in CAT. Partnership Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Thompson Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Fairman Group LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Gilfoyle & Co LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CAT has been the topic of several research reports. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $390.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. HSBC increased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Wednesday, June 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $380.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $329.63.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar 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 value of $512,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 20,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,807,820. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total transaction of $512,720.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 20,023 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,807,820. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now owns 71,115 shares in the company, valued at $25,380,943.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CAT traded up $4.25 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $335.38. 441,343 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,678,124. 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 company’s 50 day moving average is $337.19 and its 200 day moving average is $331.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $164.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.12. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $223.76 and a one year high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.07 billion. On average, research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.73 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 22nd will be issued a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 22nd. This is an increase from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.68%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is 23.48%.

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

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.