Sharpepoint LLC Makes New Investment in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Sharpepoint LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 710 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $218,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Curat Global LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar during the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan bought 375 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 6,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,133,617.10. The trade was a 5.97% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on CAT shares. Baird R W raised Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $335.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and set a $420.00 price objective (up previously from $370.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on 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, UBS Group raised shares of Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $272.00 to $357.00 in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $404.64.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE CAT traded down $1.77 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $406.56. The company had a trading volume of 1,239,787 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,528,893. The company has a market capitalization of $191.51 billion, a PE ratio of 19.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.77. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $267.30 and a 1-year high of $418.50. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $359.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $347.93.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.35 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.64 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 53.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $5.60 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be given a $1.51 dividend. This is a boost from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.