NorthStar Asset Management LLC NJ Buys 180 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

NorthStar Asset Management LLC NJ lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 18.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,151 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 180 shares during the period. NorthStar Asset Management LLC NJ’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $447,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. bought a new position in Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Compass Financial Services Inc raised 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 valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Harbor Asset Planning Inc. acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Total Wealth Planning & Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on CAT shares. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $513.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $408.00 to $569.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Caterpillar from $350.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $610.32.

Insider Activity

In other Caterpillar news, insider Lange Bob De sold 14,638 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $562.36, for a total value of $8,231,825.68. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 80,209 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,106,333.24. This trade represents a 15.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 8,184 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $570.18, for a total transaction of $4,666,353.12. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 41,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,669,312.16. The trade was a 16.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 86,229 shares of company stock valued at $43,323,118. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT stock opened at $553.04 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company’s 50-day moving average is $514.01 and its 200-day moving average is $432.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $258.81 billion, a PE ratio of 28.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.51. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $267.30 and a 1 year high of $596.21.

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

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 20th will be paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 20th. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 31.01%.

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.