Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Acquired by Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.

Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. boosted its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 6.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 22,520 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 1,441 shares during the quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $8,169,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 52.5% in the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 17,448 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,812,000 after buying an additional 6,008 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 17.6% in the second quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 3,923 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,307,000 after purchasing an additional 588 shares in the last quarter. Trinity Legacy Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.8% in the second quarter. Trinity Legacy Partners LLC now owns 17,562 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,850,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 21.5% during the second quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 215 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 39.1% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 255,605 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $84,976,000 after buying an additional 71,788 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT stock opened at $397.68 on Thursday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $287.52 and a 1 year high of $418.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $192.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The business’s 50-day moving average is $379.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $368.17.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.09% and a net margin of 16.26%. The firm had revenue of $16.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.52 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be issued a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on CAT. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $460.00 to $420.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Bank of America upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Evercore ISI raised Caterpillar from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $365.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $380.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,664 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $378.84, for a total transaction of $1,009,229.76. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,951 shares in the company, valued at $4,906,356.84. This trade represents a 17.06 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.98, for a total value of $368,788.64. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,686 shares in the company, valued at $642,332.28. This represents a 36.47 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 33,868 shares of company stock worth $13,480,389 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.