Berger Financial Group Inc Acquires 43 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Berger Financial Group Inc raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 1.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,891 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the quarter. Berger Financial Group Inc’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,411,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 729,654 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $285,382,000 after purchasing an additional 5,371 shares in the last quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 47.2% during the 3rd quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 156 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Tudor Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 3rd quarter valued at $854,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 13,317 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,208,000 after purchasing an additional 376 shares in the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 26.6% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,012 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,569,000 after purchasing an additional 843 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $306.33 on Monday. 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 business’s 50 day simple moving average is $321.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $360.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $146.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21. 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 results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. Analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.84%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.56%.

Insider Activity

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on CAT shares. DA Davidson reduced their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $357.00 to $325.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com cut Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Raymond James raised Caterpillar from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $361.75.

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.