Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Acquired by Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC

Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC grew its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 23,767 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 672 shares during the quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $8,709,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Southland Equity Partners LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 4.0% during the first quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC now owns 784 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $287,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 789 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $233,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Caterpillar by 7.4% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 480 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $176,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Lodestar Private Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Lodestar Private Asset Management LLC now owns 830 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $245,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Caterpillar by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,616 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $774,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on CAT. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. HSBC increased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the company from $293.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Friday, April 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $327.13.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total value of $512,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 20,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,807,820. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, Director David Maclennan acquired 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $337.39 per share, for a total transaction of $168,695.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,935,943.82. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total transaction of $512,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 20,023 shares in the company, valued at $6,807,820. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Down 1.0 %

CAT stock traded down $3.30 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $326.70. 1,666,112 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,668,598. The company has a market capitalization of $159.77 billion, a PE ratio of 14.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $223.76 and a twelve month high of $382.01. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $342.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $327.61.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. The company had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%. On average, research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 22nd will be issued a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 22nd. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.73%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 23.48%.

Caterpillar announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, June 12th that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to purchase up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.