Larson Financial Group LLC Boosts Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,430 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,607,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 635,750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $231,686,000 after acquiring an additional 10,212 shares during the period. West Wealth Group LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at $230,000. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 43.0% in the third quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 13,902 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,437,000 after acquiring an additional 4,181 shares during the period. Cadinha & Co. LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at $11,084,000. Finally, Atomi Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 23,193 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,414,000 after acquiring an additional 871 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Trading Up 2.9 %

Shares of CAT stock opened at $350.97 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $363.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $372.77. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $307.05 and a twelve month high of $418.50. The company has a market capitalization of $167.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.90, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. Research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st were issued a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total value of $860,147.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 6,275 shares in the company, valued at $2,225,742.50. The trade was a 27.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $365.57 per share, with a total value of $36,557.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,053 shares in the company, valued at $1,116,085.21. This trade represents a 3.39 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on CAT shares. Wedbush raised Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Caterpillar from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $383.80.

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.