Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Shares Purchased by Ritholtz Wealth Management

Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 13,960 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,001 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $6,661,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 36,842.1% during the second quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,299,751 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,833,836,000 after purchasing an additional 7,279,991 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth about $2,165,899,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 546.6% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 843,093 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $327,297,000 after acquiring an additional 712,711 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 425.2% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 761,800 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $295,738,000 after acquiring an additional 616,739 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 36.9% during the third quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 1,777,589 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $848,177,000 after acquiring an additional 478,972 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT opened at $647.05 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $585.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $500.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $302.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.57. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $267.30 and a 12-month high of $652.36.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 3rd. The industrial products company reported $4.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.52 by $0.43. The business had revenue of $17.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.72 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 14.34% and a return on equity of 47.16%. Caterpillar’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.17 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 20th will be given a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 20th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, Director David Maclennan acquired 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $568.86 per share, with a total value of $170,658.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 7,947 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,520,730.42. This trade represents a 3.92% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $575.06, for a total value of $5,750,600.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 45,460 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,142,227.60. This represents a 18.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 54,729 shares of company stock valued at $31,084,308 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Caterpillar from $612.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $690.00 to $710.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wolfe Research boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $470.00 to $670.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $623.10.

About Caterpillar

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company’s product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.