Weatherly Asset Management L. P. Raises Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Weatherly Asset Management L. P. raised its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 9.7% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 6,187 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 546 shares during the period. Weatherly Asset Management L. P.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $2,420,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 2,160.0% during the 2nd quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 113 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 215.4% during the 2nd quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 123 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on CAT shares. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $357.56.

Caterpillar Trading Up 0.9 %

NYSE CAT opened at $379.63 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 1.40. The company has a market capitalization of $184.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.10. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $372.40 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $351.42. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $232.88 and a one year high of $403.60.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%. The firm had revenue of $16.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $5.52 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be issued a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $338.59 per share, for a total transaction of $33,859.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $962,272.78. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total value of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at $11,750,181.12. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares in the company, valued at $962,272.78. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.