Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Acquired by Capital Research Global Investors

Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 69.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,924,054 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,196,861 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors’ holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,060,730,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,181,535 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,154,174,000 after buying an additional 82,579 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 292,937 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $106,266,000 after acquiring an additional 14,233 shares during the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 14.5% in the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 7,048 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,557,000 after buying an additional 895 shares during the period. Freedom Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 10.3% during the 4th quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,312 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,564,000 after buying an additional 401 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,055,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CAT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup decreased their target price on Caterpillar from $430.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Wedbush raised Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Raymond James raised shares of Caterpillar from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $361.64.

Caterpillar Stock Up 1.3 %

CAT stock opened at $293.82 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $140.42 billion, a PE ratio of 13.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a fifty day moving average of $327.08 and a 200-day moving average of $363.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $267.30 and a one year high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. As a group, analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be issued a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.56%.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other news, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $365.57 per share, for a total transaction of $36,557.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,053 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,116,085.21. The trade was a 3.39 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total value of $860,147.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,225,742.50. This represents a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.