Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC Trims Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC cut its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 15.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,948 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 697 shares during the period. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,302,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT stock opened at $385.18 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $342.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $345.93. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $267.30 and a 52 week high of $418.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $181.44 billion, a PE ratio of 18.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be issued a $1.51 dividend. This is an increase 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.57%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In related news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 6,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,133,617.10. This represents a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on CAT. Bank of America lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $335.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $396.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Oppenheimer raised Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $395.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $380.83.

Caterpillar 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CAT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.