LPL Financial LLC Has $278.49 Million Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

LPL Financial LLC raised its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 836,044 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 59,824 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC owned about 0.17% of Caterpillar worth $278,486,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 0.3% in the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 10,695 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,919,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC now owns 784 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $287,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Davis Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2.1% during the first quarter. Davis Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,454 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $541,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 2,636 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $878,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Exchange Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,016 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $372,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on CAT. Raymond James started coverage on Caterpillar in a report on Friday, June 28th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $399.00 price objective (up previously from $390.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $336.31.

Caterpillar Stock Up 0.3 %

Caterpillar stock opened at $335.00 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $163.83 billion, a PE ratio of 15.12, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.10. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $223.76 and a 12-month high of $382.01. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $340.18 and its 200 day moving average is $343.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39.

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

Caterpillar declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, June 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to reacquire up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total value of $1,119,081.60. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total transaction of $527,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,480,250. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total transaction of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 7,668 shares of company stock worth $2,665,760 over the last quarter. 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.