Argyle Capital Management LLC Buys 40 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Argyle Capital Management LLC increased its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,559 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Caterpillar makes up approximately 1.7% of Argyle Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Argyle Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $4,193,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.7% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,213,455 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,987,206,000 after buying an additional 67,148 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,952,632 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,501,554,000 after acquiring an additional 205,012 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,627,513 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,418,793,000 after purchasing an additional 64,452 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.3% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,227,378 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,262,290,000 after purchasing an additional 8,088 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2.3% during the third quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,349,608 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $527,859,000 after purchasing an additional 30,609 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $398.57 per share, for a total transaction of $39,857.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,176,977.21. The trade was a 3.51 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,173,226.38. This trade represents a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT opened at $340.68 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $366.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $372.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $307.05 and a 52 week high of $418.50. The stock has a market cap of $162.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.44, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.12.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. On average, analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st were given a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.66%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 25.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Wedbush raised shares of Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Raymond James raised Caterpillar from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $383.80.

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.