Sapient Capital LLC Buys New Shares in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 12,700 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,755,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. McIlrath & Eck LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 789 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $233,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Lodestar Private Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Lodestar Private Asset Management LLC now owns 830 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $245,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,616 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $774,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,507 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,037,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ACT Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. ACT Wealth Management LLC now owns 877 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $259,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT stock traded up $1.31 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $336.75. The company had a trading volume of 1,977,087 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,750,444. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $351.89 and a 200-day moving average price of $303.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The company has a market capitalization of $164.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.19. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $205.60 and a 1 year high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.12 by $0.48. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.07 billion. On average, research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 23.48%.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, Director David Maclennan acquired 350 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $323.37 per share, with a total value of $113,179.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 5,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,693,812.06. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total transaction of $6,899,070.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 61,092 shares in the company, valued at $19,886,667.84. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan purchased 350 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $323.37 per share, for a total transaction of $113,179.50. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 5,238 shares in the company, valued at $1,693,812.06. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Evercore ISI downgraded shares of Caterpillar from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and increased their target price for the company from $321.00 to $338.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. HSBC lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $290.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $323.35.

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.