Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Stake Increased by Fulton Bank N.A.

Fulton Bank N.A. raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,710 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the quarter. Fulton Bank N.A.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $570,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,660,560,000. Capital Wealth Planning LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 27,495.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 1,182,453 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $349,616,000 after buying an additional 1,178,168 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 19.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,264,635 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $947,875,000 after buying an additional 529,420 shares in the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 5,293.1% during the fourth quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 482,360 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $142,620,000 after buying an additional 473,416 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 265.2% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 507,322 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $150,000,000 after buying an additional 368,421 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:CAT traded down $1.78 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $324.66. 1,462,760 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,749,595. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $223.76 and a 52 week high of $382.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The company has a market cap of $158.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $333.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $338.54.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.53 by $0.46. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. The business had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.91 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $5.55 EPS. Caterpillar’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.74%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is presently 25.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $356.90, for a total transaction of $7,797,194.30. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 71,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,380,943.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total value of $527,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,515 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,480,250. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.90, for a total value of $7,797,194.30. Following the sale, the insider now owns 71,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,380,943.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 24,863 shares of company stock valued at $8,837,714. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. HSBC upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $376.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Raymond James started coverage on Caterpillar in a report on Friday, June 28th. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $399.00 target price (up previously from $390.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $337.38.

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.