Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Bought by Root Financial Partners LLC

Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 20.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,974 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 334 shares during the quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $716,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 334.8% during the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC increased its position in Caterpillar by 42.9% during the third quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 130.0% in the fourth quarter. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC now owns 115 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Caterpillar news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 6,279 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $408.59, for a total transaction of $2,565,536.61. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 33,565 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,714,323.35. The trade was a 15.76 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $365.57 per share, for a total transaction of $36,557.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,116,085.21. This trade represents a 3.39 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT stock opened at $353.97 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The business has a 50 day moving average of $374.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $371.81. The company has a market cap of $170.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.04, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.12. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $307.05 and a 52 week high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 20.05 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 25.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAT has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group raised shares of Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com upgraded Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $383.13.

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.