Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by FORVIS Wealth Advisors LLC

FORVIS Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.0% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 21,246 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 424 shares during the quarter. FORVIS Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $7,785,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Waterway Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $352,000. Farmers Trust Co. increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Farmers Trust Co. now owns 4,490 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,328,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 19.4% during the 4th quarter. Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,825 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $540,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 20.0% during the 4th quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 21,343 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,310,000 after purchasing an additional 3,558 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 1,074 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $318,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of CAT stock traded up $2.85 on Thursday, hitting $330.61. 1,352,181 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,422,689. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $338.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $330.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $161.69 billion, a PE ratio of 14.93, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.12. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $223.76 and a twelve month high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.8 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. This is a boost from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 22nd. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.71%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is presently 25.46%.

Caterpillar announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program 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 programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $380.00 price target for the company. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Raymond James initiated coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Friday, June 28th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. HSBC boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Thursday, March 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $390.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $329.63.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.90, for a total value of $7,797,194.30. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 71,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,380,943.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Caterpillar news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.90, for a total value of $7,797,194.30. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 71,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,380,943.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 20,023 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,807,820. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.