Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Purchased by Pineridge Advisors LLC

Pineridge Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 43.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 168 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $61,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 635,750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $231,686,000 after acquiring an additional 10,212 shares during the period. West Wealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $230,000. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 43.0% in the third quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 13,902 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,437,000 after acquiring an additional 4,181 shares in the last quarter. Cadinha & Co. LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at $11,084,000. Finally, First Affirmative Financial Network acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 3rd quarter worth $204,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CAT opened at $363.11 on Tuesday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $307.05 and a 1-year high of $418.50. The company has a market cap of $175.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $376.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $371.73.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. Analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 20.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be paid a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.55%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on CAT. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. DA Davidson raised their target price on Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Caterpillar from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $365.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $383.13.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 6,279 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $408.59, for a total value of $2,565,536.61. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,714,323.35. This represents a 15.76 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $398.57 per share, for a total transaction of $39,857.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,176,977.21. This trade represents a 3.51 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.