Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Shares Bought by Empowered Funds LLC

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar Inc. by 97.0%, owning 57,497 shares worth approximately $18.96 million after buying an additional 28,308 shares in Q1.
• Analysts have recently adjusted their price targets for Caterpillar, with UBS Group raising the target from $272 to $357, while DA Davidson increased it from $331 to $388, reflecting positive sentiment towards the stock.
• Caterpillar's quarterly dividend was increased to $1.51 per share, marking a positive change from the prior $1.41, with an annual yield of 1.4% and a payout ratio of 30.72%.

Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 97.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 57,497 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 28,308 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $18,963,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MBB Public Markets I LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar during the 1st quarter worth about $309,000. Ascent Group LLC increased its position in Caterpillar by 172.5% during the 1st quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 4,467 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,473,000 after purchasing an additional 2,828 shares in the last quarter. RNC Capital Management LLC increased its position in Caterpillar by 83.5% during the 1st quarter. RNC Capital Management LLC now owns 4,280 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,412,000 after purchasing an additional 1,948 shares in the last quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Caterpillar by 26.8% during the 1st quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,063 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,989,000 after purchasing an additional 1,916 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 1st quarter worth about $483,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Evercore ISI raised Caterpillar from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $476.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Caterpillar from $500.00 to $495.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 29th. Melius raised Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $500.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $500.00 target price on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Friday, August 29th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on Caterpillar from $460.00 to $495.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $457.20.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT stock traded up $8.71 on Thursday, hitting $431.62. 2,737,694 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,446,142. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a market capitalization of $202.21 billion, a PE ratio of 21.95, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.41. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $267.30 and a 1-year high of $441.15. The company's fifty day moving average is $419.41 and its 200 day moving average is $364.55.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.88 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $16.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $5.99 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total transaction of $902,649.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,632 shares in the company, valued at $3,605,586.40. This represents a 20.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total value of $952,840.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 6,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,835,970. The trade was a 25.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 21,653 shares of company stock worth $8,943,642 in the last three months. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.