Gabelli Funds LLC Grows Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Gabelli Funds LLC raised its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 7.5% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 105,532 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,392 shares during the period. Gabelli Funds LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $74,765,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Cornerstone Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC now owns 1,818 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,288,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Resource Group lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Advisory Resource Group now owns 1,632 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $935,000 after buying an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC now owns 1,164 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $825,000 after buying an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Brandywine Oak Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 2.6% during the first quarter. Brandywine Oak Private Wealth LLC now owns 506 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $358,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sylvest Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 3.6% during the first quarter. Sylvest Advisors LLC now owns 377 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $267,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $889.23 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $928.88 and a 200 day moving average price of $804.12. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $405.46 and a fifty-two week high of $1,073.46. The firm has a market cap of $409.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.65 by $0.89. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.21% and a net margin of 13.33%.The company had revenue of $17.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.25 EPS. Caterpillar’s quarterly revenue was up 22.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 24.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 20th will be issued a $1.63 dividend. This is a boost from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.51. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 20th. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.45%.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 15,674 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $918.71, for a total value of $14,399,860.54. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 52,935 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,631,913.85. This trade represents a 22.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Denise C. Johnson sold 12,605 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $907.91, for a total transaction of $11,444,205.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 49,825 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $45,236,615.75. This trade represents a 20.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 95,773 shares of company stock valued at $87,642,635 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Zacks Research downgraded Caterpillar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Caterpillar from $900.00 to $1,045.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Daiwa Securities Group increased their target price on Caterpillar from $790.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $1,043.00 to $1,218.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $980.57.

Caterpillar Company Profile

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company’s product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.