Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Stock Price Up 0.4%

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) shot up 0.4% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $333.26 and last traded at $329.64. 421,171 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 84% from the average session volume of 2,685,578 shares. The stock had previously closed at $328.35.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on CAT. Raymond James started coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Friday, June 28th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $390.00 price target for the company. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Wednesday, June 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $380.00 price target for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $329.63.

Caterpillar Stock Up 0.7 %

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $337.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $331.46. The firm has a market cap of $160.60 billion, a PE ratio of 14.79, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.07 billion. Sell-side analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.73 EPS 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 paid a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 22nd. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.72%. This is a boost from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 23.48%.

Caterpillar announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 12th that permits the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to reacquire up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 71,115 shares in the company, valued at $25,380,943.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Caterpillar news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $6,807,820. 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 business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 71,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,380,943.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Caterpillar

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Southland Equity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC now owns 784 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $287,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Davis Investment Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Davis Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,454 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $541,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 10,695 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,919,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Hilltop National Bank raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 2,636 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $878,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Finally, Exchange Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Exchange Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,016 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $372,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

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.