Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Holdings Boosted by Foundry Partners LLC

Foundry Partners LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 9.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 87,080 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 7,238 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar makes up approximately 1.6% of Foundry Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Foundry Partners LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $29,006,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 26,851 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,944,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Caterpillar by 7.7% in the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 626,481 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $208,681,000 after purchasing an additional 44,699 shares during the last quarter. Altus Wealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter valued at approximately $202,000. BBR Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.4% in the second quarter. BBR Partners LLC now owns 4,189 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,395,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Peterson Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter worth $544,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Caterpillar news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $338.59 per share, for a total transaction of $33,859.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 2,842 shares in the company, valued at approximately $962,272.78. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $338.59 per share, for a total transaction of $33,859.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $962,272.78. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 15,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,347,825.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 7,668 shares of company stock worth $2,665,760 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $385.00 to $376.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Barclays raised their target price on Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $399.00 price objective (up previously from $390.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Raymond James started coverage on Caterpillar in a report on Friday, June 28th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $336.31.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.4 %

Caterpillar stock traded down $1.28 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $332.28. The company had a trading volume of 351,326 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,667,901. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $223.76 and a 12 month high of $382.01. The company has a market capitalization of $162.50 billion, a PE ratio of 15.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.12. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $339.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $343.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.53 by $0.46. The company had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.91 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.58% and a return on equity of 59.88%. Caterpillar’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.55 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 22nd were given a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 22nd. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.70%. This is an increase from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.46%.

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.