Spire Wealth Management Boosts Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Spire Wealth Management boosted its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 15.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,916 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,999 shares during the quarter. Spire Wealth Management's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $4,919,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. raised its position in Caterpillar by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 471 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $171,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Carrera Capital Advisors grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Carrera Capital Advisors now owns 1,238 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $449,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. BBR Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. BBR Partners LLC now owns 4,162 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,510,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 962 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $349,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 20.3% during the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 184 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on CAT. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Morgan Stanley raised Caterpillar from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $300.00 to $283.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $335.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Oppenheimer upgraded Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $395.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $395.00 to $422.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $380.83.

Caterpillar Trading Up 2.7%

NYSE CAT traded up $10.12 during trading on Thursday, hitting $381.70. The stock had a trading volume of 2,571,921 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,536,634. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. The company has a market capitalization of $179.80 billion, a PE ratio of 18.08, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.37. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $338.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $346.61. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $267.30 and a twelve month high of $418.50.

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 for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.35 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.64 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 53.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $5.60 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast 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. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be given a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. This is a boost from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. Caterpillar's payout ratio is 27.49%.

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.