Entropy Technologies LP Takes Position in Cummins Inc. (NYSE:CMI)

Key Points

• Entropy Technologies LP has made a new investment of approximately $2.31 million in Cummins Inc., acquiring 7,369 shares during the first quarter.
• Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Cummins by 1.9%, now owning over $5.4 billion in shares, with institutional investors collectively holding 83.46% of the company's stock.
• Cummins announced a quarterly dividend increase to $2.00 per share, up from the previous $1.82, reflecting a positive dividend growth strategy.

Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Cummins Inc. (NYSE:CMI - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 7,369 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,310,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CMI. Fayez Sarofim & Co grew its stake in Cummins by 72.3% during the fourth quarter. Fayez Sarofim & Co now owns 8,195 shares of the company's stock worth $2,857,000 after buying an additional 3,440 shares in the last quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC bought a new stake in Cummins during the first quarter worth $440,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in shares of Cummins by 8.9% in the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 13,666 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,283,000 after purchasing an additional 1,114 shares in the last quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP increased its stake in shares of Cummins by 19.1% in the 1st quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 7,747 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,428,000 after purchasing an additional 1,241 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Cummins by 11.6% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,215,956 shares of the company's stock worth $381,129,000 after buying an additional 126,362 shares in the last quarter. 83.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Jennifer Mary Bush sold 520 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $388.13, for a total transaction of $201,827.60. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 15,130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,872,406.90. This trade represents a 3.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Luther E. Peters sold 4,850 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $389.19, for a total transaction of $1,887,571.50. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 7,693 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,994,038.67. This represents a 38.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 17,870 shares of company stock valued at $7,091,899. 0.41% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on CMI. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Cummins from $315.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Cummins from $308.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Cummins to an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Cummins from $340.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Cummins from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $410.00 to $431.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $370.83.

Cummins Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE CMI traded down $5.07 during trading on Friday, hitting $399.74. The stock had a trading volume of 216,469 shares, compared to its average volume of 886,213. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $346.07 and a two-hundred day moving average of $332.72. The company has a market capitalization of $55.08 billion, a PE ratio of 18.80, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Cummins Inc. has a 12 month low of $260.02 and a 12 month high of $408.38.

Cummins (NYSE:CMI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported $6.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.21 by $1.22. The firm had revenue of $8.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.45 billion. Cummins had a net margin of 8.72% and a return on equity of 26.96%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $5.26 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Cummins Inc. will post 22.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cummins Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Investors of record on Friday, August 22nd will be issued a $2.00 dividend. This is an increase from Cummins's previous quarterly dividend of $1.82. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $8.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Cummins's payout ratio is presently 34.23%.

Cummins Profile

Cummins Inc designs, manufactures, distributes, and services diesel and natural gas engines, electric and hybrid powertrains, and related components worldwide. It operates through five segments: Engine, Distribution, Components, Power Systems, and Accelera. The company offers diesel and natural gas-powered engines under the Cummins and other customer brands for the heavy and medium-duty truck, bus, recreational vehicle, light-duty automotive, construction, mining, marine, rail, oil and gas, defense, and agricultural markets; and offers parts and services, as well as remanufactured parts and engines.