Triad Wealth Partners LLC Takes $49,000 Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 147 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 21,343 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,310,000 after acquiring an additional 3,558 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 17.2% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 9,037 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,308,000 after buying an additional 1,327 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,295 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,270,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 1st quarter valued at $926,000. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $222,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total value of $527,800.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,480,250. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 10th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Raymond James assumed coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Friday, June 28th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus downgraded Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their target price for the company from $293.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $337.38.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT stock traded down $2.16 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $343.48. 2,167,057 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,730,877. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The company has a market cap of $167.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.51, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $334.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $340.30. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $223.76 and a 1-year high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.53 by $0.46. The firm had revenue of $16.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.91 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%. Caterpillar’s revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $5.55 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 22nd will be issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 22nd. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 25.46%.

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.