Covington Investment Advisors Inc. Purchases 13,905 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Key Points

• Covington Investment Advisors Inc. significantly increased its stake in Caterpillar Inc. by 942.7%, acquiring an additional 13,905 shares, bringing their total holdings to 15,380 shares worth $5,072,000.
• Caterpillar recently reported a quarterly EPS of $4.72, missing analysts' estimates, but had revenue of $16.57 billion, exceeding expectations.
• The company announced a dividend increase, raising its quarterly dividend from $1.41 to $1.51, which results in an annualized yield of 1.5% and a payout ratio of 30.72%.

Covington Investment Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 942.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 15,380 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 13,905 shares during the quarter. Covington Investment Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $5,072,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CAT. Pacific Point Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at $579,000. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 51.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,409 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,688,000 after buying an additional 2,519 shares during the last quarter. Petros Family Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $399,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 277,416 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $100,639,000 after buying an additional 8,693 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 24.9% in the fourth quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 34,267 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $12,431,000 after buying an additional 6,829 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of CAT stock opened at $416.43 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $393.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $355.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. The firm has a market cap of $195.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.18, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.40. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $441.15.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.88 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $16.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.14 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 14.95% and a return on equity of 48.95%. The business's revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $5.99 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be paid a $1.51 dividend. This is a boost from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on CAT shares. Citigroup lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $460.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. Evercore ISI cut their price target on Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 19th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Monday, July 14th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $395.00 to $422.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, June 20th. Finally, Baird R W raised Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Seven investment 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $444.00.

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.

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