Franklin Resources Inc. Acquires 20,471 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 4.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 463,786 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,471 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.10% of Caterpillar worth $168,243,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wedbush upgraded shares of Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. DA Davidson lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $383.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total transaction of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,173,226.38. This trade represents a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total transaction of $860,147.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 6,275 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,225,742.50. The trade was a 27.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CAT opened at $335.16 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $351.26 and its 200 day moving average is $372.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $160.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.15. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $307.05 and a 1 year high of $418.50.

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.

About Caterpillar

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.