HighTower Advisors LLC Acquires 150,905 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

HighTower Advisors LLC increased its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 30.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 653,925 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 150,905 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.14% of Caterpillar worth $237,218,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Albion Financial Group UT lifted its position in Caterpillar by 334.8% in the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on CAT. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $438.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Caterpillar from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wedbush raised Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $383.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $17,173,226.38. This trade represents a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,225,742.50. The trade was a 27.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Trading Down 1.6 %

CAT opened at $339.66 on Wednesday. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $307.05 and a one year high of $418.50. The company has a market cap of $162.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.39, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.15. 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 business’s 50-day simple moving average is $362.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $372.93.

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

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.