Ameritas Advisory Services LLC Boosts Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Ameritas Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 26.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 22,911 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,722 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $7,868,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 38.3% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,218 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $805,000 after buying an additional 614 shares in the last quarter. Victrix Investment Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,090,000. Pacific Point Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at $579,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 18.6% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 191,640 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $63,202,000 after buying an additional 30,070 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 51.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,409 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,688,000 after buying an additional 2,519 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Caterpillar stock opened at $385.18 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $181.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $342.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $345.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $267.30 and a 12-month high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.35 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.64 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 53.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The company's revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $5.60 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. This is a positive change from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.57%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CAT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 19th. UBS Group raised Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $272.00 to $357.00 in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Caterpillar from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $300.00 to $283.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $396.00 to $414.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Baird R W upgraded Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $380.83.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan purchased 375 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 6,653 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,133,617.10. This trade represents a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

About Caterpillar

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.

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