Little House Capital LLC Increases Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Little House Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 13.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 7,068 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 851 shares during the quarter. Little House Capital LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $2,090,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Gilfoyle & Co LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter worth about $41,000. Rational Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Milestone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter worth about $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of Caterpillar stock traded up $5.38 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $343.38. 3,324,630 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,414,735. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 1.35. The company has a market cap of $171.48 billion, a PE ratio of 15.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.17. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $350.10 and a 200-day moving average of $300.99. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $204.04 and a 12 month high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.12 by $0.48. The company 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%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.51%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.48%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Caterpillar news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total value of $6,899,070.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 61,092 shares in the company, valued at $19,886,667.84. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total value of $6,899,070.88. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 61,092 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,886,667.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 4,575 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.80, for a total value of $1,508,835.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,474 shares in the company, valued at $7,741,725.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 35,769 shares of company stock worth $11,508,906. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Caterpillar in a report on Monday, January 8th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $270.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted 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 boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. One 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $310.83.

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.