Edgestream Partners L.P. Acquires 15,864 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 580.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,596 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 15,864 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $6,133,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 46,809,540 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $16,980,629,000 after acquiring an additional 284,366 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,449,770 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,790,841,000 after acquiring an additional 236,315 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 11.8% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,847,330 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,483,937,000 after acquiring an additional 724,477 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $2,184,364,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,940,391 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,429,416,000 after buying an additional 312,878 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 6,653 shares in the company, valued at $2,133,617.10. This trade represents a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CAT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $395.00 to $422.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective 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. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $395.00 to $483.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday. 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 research report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $395.00 to $475.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $412.33.

Caterpillar Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE CAT traded down $5.12 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $412.95. The stock had a trading volume of 1,445,686 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,513,340. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.32. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $267.30 and a 1 year high of $419.90. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $367.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $349.43. The firm has a market cap of $194.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.38.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.35 by ($0.10). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 53.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The firm had revenue of $14.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $5.60 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be given a dividend of $1.51 per share. This is an increase from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar's payout ratio is presently 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.