Cadent Capital Advisors LLC Acquires Shares of 2,748 Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Cadent Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 2,748 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,075,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2.5% in the first quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 5,180 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,884,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the period. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 1st quarter worth about $456,000. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 21.8% during the 1st quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 7,083 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,596,000 after buying an additional 1,270 shares in the last quarter. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 2.1% during the first quarter. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC now owns 21,918 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,031,000 after buying an additional 455 shares during the period. Finally, CHICAGO TRUST Co NA boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 31.1% in the first quarter. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA now owns 2,478 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $908,000 after acquiring an additional 588 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $393.86 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $192.62 billion, a PE ratio of 17.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $363.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $350.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $223.76 and a 12-month high of $403.60.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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. The company had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.91 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.88% and a net margin of 16.58%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $5.55 EPS. Caterpillar’s revenue was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.91 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st will be paid a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 25.46%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. StockNews.com cut Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Raymond James assumed coverage on Caterpillar in a research report on Friday, June 28th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $399.00 to $456.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $355.50.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $338.59 per share, for a total transaction of $33,859.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $962,272.78. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Caterpillar news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total transaction of $1,119,081.60. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares in the company, valued at approximately $962,272.78. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.