DAVENPORT & Co LLC Grows Stake in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

DAVENPORT & Co LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.2% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 46,144 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $17,913,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 6.7% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 4,204,445 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,386,626,000 after acquiring an additional 264,054 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.5% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,304,448 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,089,798,000 after purchasing an additional 15,347 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 9.1% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,229,080 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,064,951,000 after purchasing an additional 268,300 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Caterpillar by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,141,936 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,036,211,000 after buying an additional 150,533 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,416,464 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $467,150,000 after buying an additional 5,559 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Trading Down 0.4%

Caterpillar stock opened at $495.80 on Tuesday. 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 Inc. has a 1 year low of $267.30 and a 1 year high of $505.59. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $438.25 and its 200-day moving average is $380.18. The company has a market cap of $232.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.22, a PEG ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 1.46.

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

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 20th will be given a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 20th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 30.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on CAT shares. Erste Group Bank raised Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Melius Research raised Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $500.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Melius raised shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $500.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Tuesday, September 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $495.00 to $540.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $466.53.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total value of $952,840.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 6,917 shares in the company, valued at $2,835,970. This trade represents a 25.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,166 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $462.65, for a total transaction of $7,941,849.90. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 465,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $215,289,088.35. The trade was a 3.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,819 shares of company stock valued at $16,885,492 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

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.