Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Stock Position Raised by Welch Group LLC

Welch Group LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 40,697 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,063 shares during the period. Welch Group LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $19,419,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Kilter Group LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at $28,000. Compass Financial Services Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 49.2% during the first quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc now owns 94 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. RiverPark Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on CAT. Argus boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $460.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Hsbc Global Res raised Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $485.00 to $555.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $729.00 target price (up from $582.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on Caterpillar in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $560.00 target price on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $616.00.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $583.12 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $272.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.93, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 0.86. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $627.50. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $564.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $472.03.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $4.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.52 by $0.43. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 47.16% and a net margin of 14.34%.The company had revenue of $17.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.72 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.17 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 20th will be given a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 20th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 31.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 10,707 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $563.60, for a total transaction of $6,034,465.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 8,649 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,874,576.40. This trade represents a 55.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $571.44, for a total transaction of $5,714,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 55,460 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,692,062.40. This trade represents a 15.28% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 61,895 shares of company stock worth $34,007,516 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

About Caterpillar

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company’s product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.