Wealth Watch Advisors INC Sells 882 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Wealth Watch Advisors INC trimmed its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 28.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,227 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 882 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar makes up 0.7% of Wealth Watch Advisors INC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Wealth Watch Advisors INC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,578,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of CAT. Lam Group Inc. bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 220.0% in the fourth quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 48 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Monetary Solutions Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Denise C. Johnson sold 12,605 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $907.91, for a total value of $11,444,205.55. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 49,825 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $45,236,615.75. This represents a 20.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 5,642 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $883.03, for a total transaction of $4,982,055.26. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,594 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,471,789.82. This trade represents a 37.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 95,773 shares of company stock valued at $87,642,635 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CAT. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $1,050.00 to $1,155.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $1,165.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $650.00 to $845.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Caterpillar from $1,125.00 to $1,165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Caterpillar from $1,020.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $980.57.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT opened at $889.23 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $928.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $805.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $409.57 billion, a PE ratio of 44.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.57. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $405.46 and a one year high of $1,073.46.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $17.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $4.25 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 24.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Investors of record on Monday, July 20th will be paid a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 20th. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.51. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 32.45%.

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.