Financial Counselors Inc. Purchases 1,558 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Financial Counselors Inc. raised its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 165,751 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,558 shares during the period. Financial Counselors Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $60,128,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Morey & Quinn Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $387,000. Ipsen Advisor Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth $259,000. Trust Investment Advisors boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 7.9% in the fourth quarter. Trust Investment Advisors now owns 7,221 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,620,000 after acquiring an additional 529 shares during the last quarter. Summitry LLC increased its position in Caterpillar by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Summitry LLC now owns 17,490 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,345,000 after purchasing an additional 502 shares during the period. Finally, Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $59,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT stock opened at $342.65 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $163.76 billion, a PE ratio of 15.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.15. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $307.05 and a 12 month high of $418.50. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $357.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $372.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. Equities research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on CAT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wedbush upgraded shares of Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group upgraded Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $383.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

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

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.