Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Bard Financial Services Inc.

Bard Financial Services Inc. lessened its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 7.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,265 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 95 shares during the period. Bard Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $417,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired 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 in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, Director David Maclennan purchased 375 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was purchased 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 in the company, valued at approximately $2,133,617.10. The trade was a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $335.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $309.00 to $395.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $372.92.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Caterpillar stock opened at $363.09 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $171.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $323.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $349.29. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $267.30 and a 12-month high of $418.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st will be given a $1.51 dividend. This is a boost from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.66%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 27.49%.

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.