Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC Acquires 956 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 4.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,495 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 956 shares during the quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $6,759,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CAT. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on CAT. DA Davidson boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Baird R W upgraded Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Caterpillar from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and cut their price target for the company from $300.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Truist Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $396.00 price target (up from $389.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $372.92.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly 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 acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $356.79 on Monday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $327.10 and a 200-day moving average of $347.86. The company has a market capitalization of $168.06 billion, a PE ratio of 16.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $267.30 and a 52-week high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 earnings per share (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 return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.60 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. This is an increase from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.69%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is 29.43%.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CAT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.