Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. Has $60.73 Million Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 0.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 184,152 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,568 shares during the quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $60,733,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in CAT. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 46,809,540 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $16,980,629,000 after buying an additional 284,366 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,449,770 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,790,841,000 after buying an additional 236,315 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 9,081,775 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,294,505,000 after buying an additional 129,143 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 11.8% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,847,330 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,483,937,000 after buying an additional 724,477 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at $2,184,364,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, Director David Maclennan purchased 375 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,653 shares in the company, valued at $2,133,617.10. The trade was a 5.97% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Caterpillar stock opened at $360.23 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. The business has a 50-day moving average of $333.96 and a 200-day moving average of $346.78. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $267.30 and a 1 year high of $418.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $169.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.56, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.37.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last issued 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). Caterpillar had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 53.77%. The business 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 firm posted $5.60 earnings per share. Caterpillar's revenue for the quarter was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st will be given a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. This is a positive change from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.68%. Caterpillar's payout ratio is currently 27.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on CAT shares. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen lowered Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Baird R W upgraded Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $320.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $375.17.

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.

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