Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Stock Holdings Lifted by Phoenix Financial Ltd.

Key Points

• Phoenix Financial Ltd. increased its stake in Caterpillar Inc. by 98.7%, owning 5,368 shares valued at $1,776,000 after acquiring an additional 2,667 shares in Q1.
• Caterpillar recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.51, marking an increase from the previous dividend and representing a yield of 1.39%.
• Analysts have an overall consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Caterpillar, with target prices ranging from $373.00 to $475.00, signaling expected growth in the stock's value.

Phoenix Financial Ltd. raised its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 98.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,368 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,667 shares during the period. Phoenix Financial Ltd.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,776,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of CAT. Pacific Point Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $579,000. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 51.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,409 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,688,000 after acquiring an additional 2,519 shares in the last quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $59,000. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 189.6% during the 4th quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. now owns 2,884 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,046,000 after acquiring an additional 1,888 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UniSuper Management Pty Ltd boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 27.3% during the 4th quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 28,670 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $10,400,000 after acquiring an additional 6,145 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on CAT shares. Melius upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $500.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $420.00 price objective (up from $370.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. DA Davidson increased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $331.00 to $388.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Caterpillar from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $300.00 to $283.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $395.00 to $483.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $419.33.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Caterpillar stock traded up $4.50 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $434.55. 947,687 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,671,312. The firm has a market cap of $204.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $380.25 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $352.87. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $267.30 and a 1-year high of $436.40.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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). The company had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.64 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 53.77%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $5.60 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. This is a boost from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.39%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 375 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,653 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,133,617.10. The trade was a 5.97% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

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.