Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Bought by Sovereign Financial Group Inc.

Sovereign Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 5.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $517,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Simmons Bank increased its stake in Caterpillar by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Simmons Bank now owns 37,687 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $11,143,000 after acquiring an additional 1,196 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 19.4% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,264,635 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $947,875,000 after buying an additional 529,420 shares in the last quarter. Northern Financial Advisors Inc boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Financial Advisors Inc now owns 5,196 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,536,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 53.6% during the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 21,674 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,408,000 after buying an additional 7,565 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lincoln National Corp boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Lincoln National Corp now owns 15,370 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,544,000 after buying an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total transaction of $6,899,070.88. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 61,092 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,886,667.84. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total transaction of $6,899,070.88. Following the sale, the insider now owns 61,092 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,886,667.84. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $337.39 per share, for a total transaction of $168,695.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 5,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,935,943.82. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI cut shares of Caterpillar from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and increased their price target for the company from $321.00 to $338.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Caterpillar from $290.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. TD Cowen upped their target price on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Caterpillar from $210.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $323.35.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE:CAT traded up $2.90 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $345.00. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,943,358 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,503,008. The firm has a market cap of $168.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.35. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $352.57 and a 200-day moving average of $304.94. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $205.60 and a 12 month high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.12 by $0.48. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. Research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.51%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.48%.

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.