J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. Has $7.46 Million Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 134.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,616 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 12,960 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $7,459,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Curat Global LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the first quarter valued at about $33,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the first quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on CAT. DA Davidson increased their target price on Caterpillar from $331.00 to $388.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley raised Caterpillar from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and cut their target price for the company from $300.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $420.00 price target (up previously from $370.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Caterpillar from $395.00 to $422.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price target on Caterpillar from $396.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $419.33.

Caterpillar Stock Up 2.1%

CAT stock traded up $8.96 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $426.15. The company had a trading volume of 1,913,593 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,501,517. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.77. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $267.30 and a 52 week high of $428.10. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $369.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $349.62. The company has a market capitalization of $200.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.77, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.38.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.64 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 53.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $5.60 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. This is a boost from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.43%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director David Maclennan purchased 375 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 acquisition, the director owned 6,653 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,133,617.10. This trade represents a 5.97% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

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.