W Advisors LLC Has $685,000 Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

W Advisors LLC lessened its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 12.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,057 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 287 shares during the quarter. W Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $685,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Partnership Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Thompson Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the first quarter valued at $27,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $376.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $380.00 target price for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $336.31.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total value of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 33,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,750,181.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Caterpillar news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total transaction of $1,119,081.60. Following the sale, the insider now owns 33,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,750,181.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares in the company, valued at approximately $962,272.78. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold 7,668 shares of company stock valued at $2,665,760 over the last ninety days. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT opened at $329.36 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $161.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s fifty day moving average is $339.86 and its 200-day moving average is $343.44. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $223.76 and a 52-week high of $382.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 1.28.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.53 by $0.46. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.58% and a return on equity of 59.88%. The business had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.91 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $5.55 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 22nd were given a dividend of $1.41 per share. This is an increase from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 22nd. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.46%.

Caterpillar announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, June 12th that allows the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase up to 12.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

About Caterpillar

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.