Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Position Boosted by Mather Group LLC.

Mather Group LLC. increased its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 19.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,742 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,768 shares during the quarter. Mather Group LLC.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $17,594,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC now owns 1,635 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,741,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 944 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $936,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. Bell Bank grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bell Bank now owns 1,865 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,986,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. Cornerstone Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC now owns 1,818 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,288,000 after buying an additional 12 shares during the period. Finally, Sunbeam Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.1% during the first quarter. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC now owns 1,164 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $825,000 after buying an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Caterpillar News

Here are the key news stories impacting Caterpillar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Oppenheimer maintained an “outperform” rating and still sees substantial upside, although it lowered its price target to $1,009 from $1,118. Oppenheimer Caterpillar price-target update
• Positive Sentiment: Caterpillar maintained its quarterly dividend at $1.63 per share, payable November 19 to shareholders of record October 19. The company has paid annual cash dividends since its founding and quarterly dividends since 1933. Caterpillar Inc. Maintains Dividend

Caterpillar Trading Down 3.3%

NYSE:CAT opened at $747.18 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $510.21 and a 1-year high of $1,073.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $343.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.15, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.58. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $816.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $855.96.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The industrial products company reported $8.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.22 by $1.95. The company had revenue of $20.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.34 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 55.53% and a net margin of 14.51%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.72 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 27.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 19th. Investors of record on Monday, October 19th will be given a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 19th. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson increased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $845.00 to $882.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. President Capital began coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Friday, September 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $999.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $800.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Robert W. Baird set a $970.00 target price on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $900.00 to $925.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $967.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Joseph E. Creed sold 32,401 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $808.98, for a total transaction of $26,211,760.98. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 34,555 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,954,303.90. This trade represents a 48.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Company Profile

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, and diesel-electric locomotives. Its products are used in infrastructure development, construction, mining, energy production, transportation, agriculture, forestry, and other industrial applications.

The company markets equipment and related services through a worldwide network of independent dealers. Its operations are generally organized around Construction Industries, Resource Industries, and Energy & Transportation.