883 Shares in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Bought by Old North State Trust LLC

Old North State Trust 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 disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 883 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $320,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Baird R W upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $309.00 to $395.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $395.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Truist Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $396.00 price objective (up from $389.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $372.92.

Caterpillar Price Performance

NYSE:CAT traded down $4.69 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $347.10. 4,866,863 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,640,639. The company has a market capitalization of $163.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.35. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $418.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $319.22 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $351.14.

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

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st were issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 21st. Caterpillar's payout ratio is 27.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the purchase, the director now owns 6,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,133,617.10. This trade represents a 5.97% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company 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.