Howard Capital Management Inc. Has $1.22 Million Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Howard Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,356 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,217,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Goldstone Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the third quarter valued at $619,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 59,698 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $23,347,000 after purchasing an additional 4,632 shares in the last quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 6,671 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,609,000 after buying an additional 301 shares during the last quarter. PFG Investments LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 1.6% in the third quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 5,268 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,060,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Bank & Trust raised its position in Caterpillar by 4.0% during the third quarter. First Bank & Trust now owns 709 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $277,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE:CAT opened at $339.84 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $368.73 and its 200-day moving average is $372.72. The company has a market cap of $162.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.40, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $307.05 and a 52-week high of $418.50.

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

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st were given a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.66%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on CAT shares. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America lowered their target price 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. UBS Group raised Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $383.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Caterpillar news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 6,279 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $408.59, for a total transaction of $2,565,536.61. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 33,565 shares in the company, valued at $13,714,323.35. This trade represents a 15.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were 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 owns 6,275 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,225,742.50. This represents a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 18,704 shares of company stock worth $7,226,584 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.