Level Four Advisory Services LLC Buys 1,498 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Key Points

• Level Four Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar Inc. by 9.3%, owning 17,559 shares worth approximately $5.79 million after purchasing an additional 1,498 shares in the first quarter.
• Caterpillar recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.51 per share, reflecting an increase from the previous dividend of $1.41, with an annualized yield of 1.4%.
• Caterpillar's recent EPS was reported at $4.72, which was below the consensus estimate of $4.88, while the company experienced a revenue decline of 0.7% compared to the previous year.

Level Four Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 9.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,559 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,498 shares during the period. Level Four Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $5,791,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 962 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $349,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Allen Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 0.8% during the first quarter. Allen Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,010 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,322,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Asset Management Group Inc. grew its position in Caterpillar by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 10,771 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,907,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Summit X LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 3.2% during the first quarter. Summit X LLC now owns 1,025 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $338,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Finally, Menard Financial Group LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 1.0% during the first quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 3,174 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,019,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total value of $902,649.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,605,586.40. This trade represents a 20.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total transaction of $952,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 6,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,835,970. This trade represents 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 currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on CAT shares. Melius upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $500.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Caterpillar from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $476.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 19th. Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $395.00 to $483.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $460.00 to $495.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $450.87.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of CAT stock traded up $17.1140 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $435.0040. The stock had a trading volume of 3,784,363 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,368,960. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $405.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $357.80. 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 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $441.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $203.79 billion, a PE ratio of 22.13, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.40.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st were given a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. This is an increase from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.72%.

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.