Private Portfolio Partners LLC Has $369,000 Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Private Portfolio Partners LLC reduced its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 31.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,008 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 473 shares during the period. Private Portfolio Partners LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $369,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 3.2% during the first quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 23,471 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $8,600,000 after purchasing an additional 736 shares during the period. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 1st quarter valued at $1,112,000. Renasant Bank bought a new position in Caterpillar during the 1st quarter worth $209,000. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 9.8% during the first quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 9,748 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,572,000 after buying an additional 870 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 2.7% in the first quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 24,314 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,909,000 after acquiring an additional 638 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. HSBC lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Raymond James started coverage on Caterpillar in a research report on Friday, June 28th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Thursday, April 18th. StockNews.com raised Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $329.63.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $337.39 per share, with a total value of $168,695.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,738 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,943.82. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $337.39 per share, with a total value of $168,695.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,738 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,935,943.82. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.90, for a total transaction of $7,797,194.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 71,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,380,943.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 24,863 shares of company stock valued at $8,837,714 in the last quarter. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Caterpillar Trading Down 2.4 %

CAT traded down $8.42 during trading on Friday, reaching $347.61. 3,462,080 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,729,206. The stock has a market capitalization of $170.00 billion, a PE ratio of 15.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $223.76 and a one year high of $382.01. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $337.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $333.37.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. The company had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 22nd will be paid a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.62%. This is an increase from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 22nd. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 23.48%.

Caterpillar announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, June 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to purchase up to 12.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.