Eurizon SLJ Capital Ltd Buys New Stake in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Key Points

• Eurizon SLJ Capital Ltd disclosed a new fourth-quarter stake in Caterpillar, buying 1,390 shares worth about $796,000.
• Caterpillar reported strong quarterly results, with earnings of $5.54 per share beating estimates and revenue of $17.42 billion topping expectations, while revenue rose 22.2% year over year.
• The company also maintained shareholder returns with a quarterly dividend of $1.51 per share, and analysts remain constructive overall with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and average target price of $923.14.

Eurizon SLJ Capital Ltd bought a new stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,390 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $796,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $177,919,000. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $5,715,000. Fiducient Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $205,000. South Street Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. South Street Advisors LLC now owns 940 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $538,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $449,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of CAT opened at $872.61 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $339.50 and a fifty-two week high of $931.35. The company has a market capitalization of $401.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.63. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $811.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $702.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.35.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.65 by $0.89. Caterpillar had a net margin of 13.33% and a return on equity of 48.21%. The business had revenue of $17.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.25 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 22.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 24.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 20th were paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 20th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is 30.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on CAT. Daiwa Securities Group raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $790.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. HSBC raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $850.00 to $1,100.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $900.00 to $1,045.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley set a $915.00 price objective on Caterpillar and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Truist Financial set a $1,043.00 price objective on Caterpillar in a report on Friday, May 1st. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $923.14.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 24,222 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.92, for a total value of $22,354,968.24. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 86,029 shares in the company, valued at $79,397,884.68. This trade represents a 21.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 360 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $906.00, for a total transaction of $326,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 530 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $480,180. The trade was a 40.45% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 98,273 shares of company stock valued at $89,439,960 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Profile

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company's product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.

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