Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Holdings Cut by Brown Advisory Inc.

Brown Advisory Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 2.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 86,206 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,841 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $28,431,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Consolidated Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 6.5% in the 1st quarter. Consolidated Capital Management LLC now owns 10,246 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,379,000 after buying an additional 626 shares in the last quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 11.7% in the 1st quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,683 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $885,000 after buying an additional 282 shares in the last quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 11.2% in the 1st quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 139,204 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $45,909,000 after buying an additional 14,063 shares in the last quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 14.3% in the 1st quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. now owns 816 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $269,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Management Associates Inc lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 101.2% in the 1st quarter. Capital Management Associates Inc now owns 3,674 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,211,000 after buying an additional 1,848 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on CAT. Truist Financial upped their target price on Caterpillar from $396.00 to $414.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Baird R W raised Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Caterpillar from $395.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $395.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $404.64.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, Director David Maclennan purchased 375 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 6,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,133,617.10. This trade represents a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of CAT traded up $6.04 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $408.22. The stock had a trading volume of 3,382,685 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,535,344. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.32. The firm has a market cap of $192.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.38. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $357.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $347.63. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results 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). Caterpillar had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 53.77%. The company had revenue of $14.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $5.60 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. This is an increase from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.48%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.49%.

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.