Savant Capital LLC Buys 238 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Savant Capital LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 42,885 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 238 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $12,680,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in CAT. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 98,386 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,090,000 after buying an additional 9,460 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 32.8% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,610 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,659,000 after acquiring an additional 1,387 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors now owns 3,221 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $952,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $206,000. Finally, Certuity LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 105.8% in the 4th quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 4,300 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,271,000 after purchasing an additional 2,211 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAT has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $290.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. StockNews.com cut Caterpillar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Caterpillar from $210.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $323.35.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 4,575 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.80, for a total transaction of $1,508,835.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 23,474 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,741,725.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 4,575 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.80, for a total transaction of $1,508,835.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 23,474 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,741,725.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 350 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $323.37 per share, for a total transaction of $113,179.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 5,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,693,812.06. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold 35,769 shares of company stock worth $11,508,906 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of CAT stock opened at $335.96 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $351.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $302.22. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $205.60 and a 52-week high of $382.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $167.78 billion, a PE ratio of 15.10, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.35.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%. On average, analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.55%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.48%.

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.