Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC Cuts Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC decreased its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 7.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,196 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 618 shares during the quarter. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $3,109,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Partnership Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Thompson Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the first quarter worth $27,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Vima LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price for the company. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $380.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Raymond James started coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Friday. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Finally, Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $329.63.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 20,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,807,820. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $337.39 per share, with a total value of $168,695.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 5,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,935,943.82. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 20,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,807,820. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CAT traded up $5.64 on Friday, reaching $333.10. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 8,891,204 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,719,476. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $340.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $328.07. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $223.76 and a 52-week high of $382.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $162.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.99, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.14.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.84 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 22nd will be issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. This is a boost from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 22nd. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.48%.

Caterpillar declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, June 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to repurchase up to 12.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s management 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.