Laraway Financial Advisors Inc Invests $295,000 in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Laraway Financial Advisors Inc acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 813 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $295,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT stock opened at $325.47 on Monday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $316.76 and a 200 day simple moving average of $354.96. The stock has a market cap of $153.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.35. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $267.30 and a 1 year high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.35 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.64 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. Caterpillar’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $5.60 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be paid a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $396.00 price target (up from $389.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $395.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Baird R W upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $370.67.

Insider Activity

In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan bought 375 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,653 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,133,617.10. The trade was a 5.97% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total value of $860,147.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 6,275 shares in the company, valued at $2,225,742.50. This represents 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 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.