DAVENPORT & Co LLC Increases Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

DAVENPORT & Co LLC boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 2.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 46,070 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 1,015 shares during the period. DAVENPORT & Co LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $15,194,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 38.3% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,218 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $805,000 after purchasing an additional 614 shares during the last quarter. Victrix Investment Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $2,090,000. Pacific Point Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $579,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar by 18.6% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 191,640 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $63,202,000 after acquiring an additional 30,070 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 51.5% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,409 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,688,000 after purchasing an additional 2,519 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on CAT shares. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 19th. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating and set a $420.00 target price (up from $370.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Truist Financial raised their target price on Caterpillar from $396.00 to $414.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Oppenheimer raised shares of 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 analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $380.83.

Insider Activity

In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan bought 375 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 6,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,133,617.10. This represents a 5.97% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CAT traded up $0.90 during trading on Friday, reaching $399.33. The company had a trading volume of 1,737,838 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,523,847. 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 twelve month low of $267.30 and a twelve month high of $418.50. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $351.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $346.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $188.10 billion, a PE ratio of 19.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.38.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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. 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 yield of 1.51%. Caterpillar's payout ratio is 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.