IFP Advisors Inc Purchases 2,225 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 27.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 10,343 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 2,225 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $3,752,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Goldstone Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the third quarter valued at about $619,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,247 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $879,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,942 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,715,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares in the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 7.4% during the third quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 9,572 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,744,000 after buying an additional 660 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Financial Bankshares Inc lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 2.6% in the third quarter. First Financial Bankshares Inc now owns 2,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $782,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT stock opened at $338.65 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $368.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $373.05. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $307.05 and a 12 month high of $418.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The firm has a market cap of $161.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.12.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS 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, analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st were paid a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.67%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 25.56%.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,173,226.38. This represents a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 6,279 shares of the business’s 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. This represents a 15.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 18,704 shares of company stock valued at $7,226,584. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CAT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Caterpillar from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $438.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $383.80.

About Caterpillar

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.