MCF Advisors LLC Has $452,000 Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

MCF Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 28.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,234 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 490 shares during the quarter. MCF Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $452,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Partnership Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Thompson Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Vima LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial began coverage on Caterpillar in a report on Thursday, March 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price on the stock. HSBC lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Oppenheimer reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Raymond James initiated coverage on Caterpillar in a research note on Friday. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $329.63.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT traded up $5.64 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $333.10. 8,891,479 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,519,845. 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 has a market capitalization of $162.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.04, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.14. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $223.76 and a twelve month high of $382.01. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $340.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $328.57.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 dividend yield of 1.69%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 23.48%.

Caterpillar declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 12th that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to buy up to 12.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director David Maclennan acquired 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $337.39 per share, with a total value of $168,695.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,738 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,935,943.82. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan purchased 500 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,738 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,935,943.82. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of Caterpillar 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 $6,807,820. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.