Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Stock Holdings Boosted by LS Investment Advisors LLC

LS Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,009 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar comprises 1.9% of LS Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest position. LS Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $12,535,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Caterpillar from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $309.00 to $395.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $320.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $395.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. DA Davidson raised their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $396.00 target price (up from $389.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $372.92.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, Director David Maclennan purchased 375 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,133,617.10. This trade represents a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Price Performance

NYSE CAT opened at $349.64 on Thursday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $267.30 and a 1 year high of $418.50. The business’s fifty day moving average is $319.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $350.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $164.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.35 by ($0.10). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. The company had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.64 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.60 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st were issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.49%.

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.