Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. Lowers Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. lessened its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 9.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,217 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 649 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar accounts for approximately 1.2% of Symphony Financial Ltd. Co.’s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Symphony Financial Ltd. Co.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $2,050,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of CAT. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. raised its stake in Caterpillar by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 471 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $171,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Carrera Capital Advisors raised its stake in Caterpillar by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Carrera Capital Advisors now owns 1,238 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $449,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. BBR Partners LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. BBR Partners LLC now owns 4,162 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,510,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 962 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $349,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its stake in Caterpillar by 20.3% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 184 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 375 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 6,653 shares in the company, valued at $2,133,617.10. The trade was a 5.97% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.7%

CAT stock opened at $366.65 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $335.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $346.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $267.30 and a 52-week high of $418.50. The firm has a market cap of $172.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.87, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.37.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.35 by ($0.10). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 53.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The firm had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.60 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on CAT. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $396.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Caterpillar from $395.00 to $422.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 19th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $376.67.

Caterpillar Company 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.