LM Advisors LLC Takes $467,000 Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

LM Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,286 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $467,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. FSM Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. FSM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 688 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $262,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 4,247 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,541,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Wagner Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Wagner Wealth Management LLC now owns 668 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $242,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the period. Total Clarity Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Caterpillar by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Total Clarity Wealth Management Inc. now owns 4,373 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,586,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Caterpillar by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC now owns 857 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $311,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on CAT. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 19th. Oppenheimer upgraded Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $395.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. DA Davidson upped their price target on Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Baird R W upgraded Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $375.33.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT stock traded down $1.83 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $349.68. The company had a trading volume of 1,921,494 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,635,153. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $267.30 and a 1-year high of $418.50. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $318.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $351.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The company has a market capitalization of $164.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.35.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.35 by ($0.10). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. The company had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $5.60 earnings per share. Caterpillar's revenue for the quarter was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st were given a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.61%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.49%.

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.