Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Grows Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. by 9.2%, owning 1,181,849 shares worth $389.77 million at the end of the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors, including GAMMA Investing LLC and Pacer Advisors Inc., significantly boosted their stakes in Caterpillar, with ownership by institutional investors currently at 70.98%.
• Caterpillar announced a quarterly dividend of $1.51, representing an increase from its previous dividend of $1.41, with a dividend yield of 1.4%.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 9.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,181,849 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 99,940 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.25% of Caterpillar worth $389,774,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of CAT. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 43,447.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,730,259 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,230,239,000 after acquiring an additional 3,721,693 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 2,723.1% during the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,414,280 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $466,430,000 after purchasing an additional 1,364,183 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 69.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,924,054 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,060,730,000 after purchasing an additional 1,196,861 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 11.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,847,330 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,483,937,000 after purchasing an additional 724,477 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,940,391 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,429,416,000 after purchasing an additional 312,878 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CAT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. DA Davidson upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $331.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Barclays upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $383.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group upgraded Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $272.00 to $357.00 in a report on Friday, May 16th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $395.00 to $422.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Finally, Melius Research raised Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $500.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $444.00.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT stock traded down $0.69 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $416.43. The stock had a trading volume of 2,965,068 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,924,406. The stock has a market cap of $195.09 billion, a PE ratio of 21.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.34. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $393.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $355.47. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $267.30 and a 52-week high of $441.15.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last issued 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 firm had revenue of $16.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.14 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.95% and a net margin of 14.95%. The business's revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $5.99 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st will be paid a $1.51 dividend. This is a positive change from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.