Merit Financial Group LLC Has $11.89 Million Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Key Points

• Merit Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar Inc. by 43.4% in Q2, owning 30,639 shares now valued at approximately $11.89 million.
• A number of analysts have updated their ratings for Caterpillar, with **Citigroup** maintaining a "buy" rating and raising the price target, while others have upgraded or set high targets, suggesting strong market confidence.
• Insider trading activity includes Caterpillar's chairman selling over 17,000 shares for nearly $7.94 million, leading to a 3.56% decrease in his ownership of the stock.

Merit Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 43.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,639 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 9,266 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $11,894,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Compass Financial Services Inc boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 49.2% during the 1st quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc now owns 94 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the second quarter worth $32,000. Curat Global LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the first quarter worth $33,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the first quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 1st quarter valued at $45,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on CAT shares. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Evercore ISI raised Caterpillar from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $476.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $383.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Melius raised shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $500.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $466.53.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT opened at $498.48 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $504.48. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $436.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $378.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $233.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.35, a PEG ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 1.46. 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 (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.14 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 14.95% and a return on equity of 48.95%. Caterpillar's revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.99 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,166 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $462.65, for a total value of $7,941,849.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 465,339 shares of the company's stock, valued at $215,289,088.35. This trade represents a 3.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, 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 sale, the insider directly owned 8,632 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,605,586.40. The trade was a 20.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 38,819 shares of company stock valued at $16,885,492 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

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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