SMART Wealth LLC Boosts Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

SMART Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 60.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,274 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 856 shares during the period. SMART Wealth LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $825,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 3.6% in the third quarter. Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd. now owns 1,252 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $490,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. CWM LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 11.8% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 77,811 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,433,000 after buying an additional 8,212 shares during the period. Marcum Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 3.4% during the third quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 2,649 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,036,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. Wedmont Private Capital raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 10.9% in the third quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 6,846 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,726,000 after acquiring an additional 672 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC grew its stake in Caterpillar by 25.0% during the 3rd quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 465 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $182,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 6,279 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $408.59, for a total transaction of $2,565,536.61. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,565 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,714,323.35. The trade was a 15.76 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $398.57 per share, with a total value of $39,857.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,176,977.21. This represents a 3.51 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE CAT opened at $365.54 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $378.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $371.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The firm has a market cap of $176.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.12. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $307.05 and a 52-week high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.54%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Caterpillar from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $365.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $383.13.

Caterpillar 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.