Fiduciary Financial Group LLC Makes New $654,000 Investment in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Fiduciary Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,815 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $654,000.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 21,343 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,310,000 after purchasing an additional 3,558 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 17.2% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 9,037 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,308,000 after acquiring an additional 1,327 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,295 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,270,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 1st quarter valued at about $926,000. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $222,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total value of $527,800.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,515 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,480,250. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CAT traded down $2.16 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $343.48. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,167,057 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,730,877. The firm has a market capitalization of $167.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 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. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $334.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $340.02. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $223.76 and a one year high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.53 by $0.46. The business had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.91 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.55 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, June 12th that allows the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to reacquire up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 22nd will be issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 22nd. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is presently 25.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on CAT shares. TD Cowen upped 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. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their target price for the company from $293.00 to $350.00 in a report on Friday, April 26th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $399.00 target price (up previously from $390.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, HSBC upped their target price on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $337.38.

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.