Vanguard Group Inc. Grows Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 46,809,540 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 284,366 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 9.70% of Caterpillar worth $16,980,629,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in Caterpillar by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 635,750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $231,686,000 after purchasing an additional 10,212 shares in the last quarter. West Wealth Group LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at about $230,000. Cadinha & Co. LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at about $11,084,000. Atomi Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 23,193 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,414,000 after acquiring an additional 871 shares during the period. Finally, Copley Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the third quarter valued at about $800,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE CAT opened at $335.49 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $358.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $372.05. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $307.05 and a fifty-two week high of $418.50. The company has a market cap of $160.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.20, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.15.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Caterpillar from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $438.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Raymond James raised Caterpillar from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $383.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $365.57 per share, with a total value of $36,557.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,116,085.21. The trade was a 3.39 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at $17,173,226.38. This trade represents a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.