GAMMA Investing LLC Boosts Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 32.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,311 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,745 shares during the quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $3,730,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

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

Caterpillar Trading Up 0.9%

CAT stock traded up $3.30 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $385.18. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,445,249 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,521,036. 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 stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $342.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $346.17. 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 $181.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.77, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.37.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.35 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $14.25 billion during 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 business's revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $5.60 earnings per share. 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st will be issued a $1.51 dividend. 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 1.57%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar's payout ratio is presently 27.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on CAT. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Caterpillar from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $300.00 to $283.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Baird R W raised shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price target 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. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $380.83.

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.