Liberty Wealth Management LLC Acquires 30,737 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Key Points

• Liberty Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar Inc. by 147.1%, acquiring an additional 30,737 shares, bringing its total ownership to 51,631 shares valued at approximately $17 million.
• Caterpillar has seen an increase in analyst price targets, with estimates ranging up to $483.00, and the stock currently has a Moderate Buy rating with an average target price of $419.33.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.51, up from the previous $1.41, indicating a commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Liberty Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 147.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 51,631 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 30,737 shares during the period. Liberty Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $17,028,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Victrix Investment Advisors bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $2,090,000. Pacific Point Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $579,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 18.6% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 191,640 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $63,202,000 after buying an additional 30,070 shares in the last quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 22,689 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $7,483,000 after acquiring an additional 743 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Liberty Square Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 5.8% during the 1st quarter. Liberty Square Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,636 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $540,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 6,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,133,617.10. The trade was a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on CAT shares. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Monday, July 14th. DA Davidson upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $331.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Bank of America raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $335.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $395.00 to $422.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $395.00 to $483.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $419.33.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $428.85 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $385.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $354.22. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $267.30 and a one year high of $441.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $202.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.90, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.40.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.35 by ($0.10). Caterpillar had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 53.77%. The firm had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.60 EPS. The company's revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be paid a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend 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 is Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.43%.

About Caterpillar

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.

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