LMG Wealth Partners LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

LMG Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,892 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the period. LMG Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $3,588,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Corps Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at $1,830,000. Abacus Planning Group Inc. increased its position in Caterpillar by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 2,897 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,051,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Private Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 10.0% in the 4th quarter. Private Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $399,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. TBH Global Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. TBH Global Asset Management LLC now owns 2,101 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $762,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar by 706.3% in the fourth quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 15,554 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,642,000 after buying an additional 13,625 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE CAT opened at $353.26 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $370.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $372.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $170.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.12. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $307.05 and a fifty-two week high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is presently 25.56%.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 6,279 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the insider now owns 33,565 shares in the company, valued at $13,714,323.35. The trade was a 15.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction 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 stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $398.57 per share, with a total value of $39,857.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,176,977.21. This trade represents a 3.51 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 18,704 shares of company stock worth $7,226,584. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CAT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America dropped their price target on Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. DA Davidson upped their target price on Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $383.80.

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.