Beacon Financial Advisory LLC Increases Position in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Beacon Financial Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,064 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $801,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Compass Financial Services Inc boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 49.2% in the 1st quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc now owns 94 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Curat Global LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Maseco LLP acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth about $45,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.6%

CAT opened at $498.48 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $267.30 and a one year high of $504.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $233.53 billion, a PE ratio of 25.35, a P/E/G ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 1.46. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $436.99 and its 200 day moving average price is $378.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.34.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.88 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a net margin of 14.95% and a return on equity of 48.95%. The business had revenue of $16.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $5.99 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,168 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $412.87, for a total value of $7,088,152.16. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 482,505 shares in the company, valued at approximately $199,211,839.35. This represents a 3.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total value of $902,649.70. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 8,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,605,586.40. The trade was a 20.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 38,819 shares of company stock worth $16,885,492. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on CAT shares. Melius Research upgraded Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $500.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Monday, July 14th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $495.00 to $517.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $475.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $383.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $466.53.

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.