Carbahal Olsen Financial Services Group LLC Acquires New Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Carbahal Olsen Financial Services Group LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 621 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $205,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 11.8% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,847,330 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,483,937,000 after purchasing an additional 724,477 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,184,364,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,940,391 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,429,416,000 after acquiring an additional 312,878 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 43,447.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,730,259 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,230,239,000 after acquiring an additional 3,721,693 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on CAT. Morgan Stanley upgraded Caterpillar from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $300.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Melius Research raised Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $500.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Monday, July 14th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $335.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $420.00 price objective (up from $370.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $419.33.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.1%

CAT stock traded up $4.55 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $434.07. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,207,764 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,516,496. The company has a market cap of $204.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.38. The business's 50 day moving average price is $377.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $351.88. 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 $434.87.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be given a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. This is a boost from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.43%.

Insider Activity

In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan bought 375 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 6,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,133,617.10. The trade was a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

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.