Gabelli Funds LLC Has $35.12 Million Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Key Points

• Gabelli Funds LLC has reduced its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. by 2.9%, selling 3,165 shares, and currently holds a total of 106,490 shares valued at $35.12 million.
• Wall Street analysts have given Caterpillar a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $450.87, after multiple upgrades from various investment firms.
• Caterpillar recently increased its quarterly dividend from $1.41 to $1.51, reflecting an annual dividend yield of 1.4% with a payout ratio of 30.72%.

Gabelli Funds LLC reduced its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 2.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 106,490 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 3,165 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $35,120,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new position in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Curat Global LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the 1st quarter worth $33,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $414.00 to $507.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $460.00 to $495.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $460.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Barclays boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $383.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Caterpillar from $500.00 to $495.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $455.53.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the business'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 sale, the insider directly owned 8,632 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,605,586.40. The trade was a 20.02% 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, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total value of $952,840.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 6,917 shares in the company, valued at $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. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Trading Down 3.5%

Shares of Caterpillar stock traded down $15.35 on Friday, reaching $419.56. 3,669,497 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,249,762. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $412.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $360.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $196.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $267.30 and a fifty-two week high of $441.15.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st were given a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. This is a boost from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar's payout ratio is presently 30.72%.

Caterpillar Company 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.