UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp Has $1.66 Million Position in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 4,283 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the period. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,663,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Compass Financial Services Inc boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 49.2% during the 1st quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc now owns 94 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Harbor Asset Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Total Wealth Planning & Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Caterpillar news, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,168 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $412.87, for a total value of $7,088,152.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 482,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $199,211,839.35. The trade was a 3.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total transaction of $952,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,835,970. This represents a 25.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 55,985 shares of company stock valued at $25,559,300. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on CAT shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $350.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Melius Research upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $500.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $513.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $729.00 price objective (up from $582.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $500.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Caterpillar has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $562.25.

Caterpillar Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of NYSE CAT opened at $582.30 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $267.30 and a 1-year high of $596.21. The company has a market cap of $272.80 billion, a PE ratio of 29.89, a P/E/G ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. The company has a 50-day moving average of $475.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $406.43.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $4.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.52 by $0.43. Caterpillar had a net margin of 14.34% and a return on equity of 47.16%. The company had revenue of $17.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.72 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.17 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 20th will be paid a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 20th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 30.72%.

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.