Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Bought by Wealthfront Advisers LLC

Wealthfront Advisers LLC grew its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 141.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 138,605 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 81,245 shares during the period. Wealthfront Advisers LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $50,280,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 0.7% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 729,654 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $285,382,000 after buying an additional 5,371 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Assetmark Inc. raised its position in Caterpillar by 5.3% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 16,773 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,560,000 after acquiring an additional 841 shares in the last quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter worth about $242,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar during the 3rd quarter valued at about $220,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on CAT shares. Bank of America decreased their target price on Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James raised Caterpillar from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group raised Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $383.80.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total value of $860,147.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares in the company, valued at $2,225,742.50. The trade was a 27.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 45,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,173,226.38. This trade represents a 18.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Down 1.5 %

CAT stock opened at $344.90 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $164.84 billion, a PE ratio of 15.63, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.15. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $307.05 and a 1-year high of $418.50. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $362.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $373.00.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

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.