Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Makes New $191.38 Million Investment in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Key Points

• Ohio’s public employees’ retirement system purchased 179,718 Caterpillar shares worth approximately $191.38 million in the second quarter, making CAT its 28th-largest holding. Institutional investors collectively own 70.98% of the company.
• Caterpillar reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $8.17 versus the $6.22 estimate and revenue of $20.54 billion, up 23.7% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $1.63 per share.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and average price target of $995.52, although CEO Joseph Creed sold 32,401 shares, reducing his holdings by 48.39%.

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 179,718 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $191,382,000. Caterpillar accounts for approximately 0.6% of Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. MASTERINVEST Kapitalanlage GmbH acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth about $5,082,000. PenderFund Capital Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $958,000. Triton Financial Group Inc bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $869,000. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,861,000. Finally, Blue Edge Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter worth approximately $14,034,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Joseph E. Creed sold 32,401 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $808.98, for a total value of $26,211,760.98. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 34,555 shares of the company's stock, valued at $27,954,303.90. The trade was a 48.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $1,020.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $845.00 to $882.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Zacks Research raised shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $1,125.00 to $1,165.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $800.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $995.52.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CAT opened at $813.51 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $373.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.00, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.60. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $416.44 and a one year high of $1,073.46. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $868.12 and a 200 day simple moving average of $839.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The industrial products company reported $8.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.22 by $1.95. The firm had revenue of $20.54 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.34 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 14.51% and a return on equity of 55.53%. The business's revenue was up 23.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.72 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 27.34 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 20th were given a dividend of $1.63 per share. This is an increase from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.51. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 20th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.06%.

Caterpillar Company Profile

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company's product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.

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