Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. Boosts Stake in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Key Points

• Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. increased its stake in Caterpillar Inc. by 5.6% in Q2, bringing its total holdings to 25,401 shares valued at approximately $9.86 million.
• Caterpillar reported $4.72 earnings per share for the last quarter, missing expectations, while revenue was down 0.7% year-over-year at $16.57 billion.
• The company plans to pay a quarterly $1.51 dividend on November 20th, representing an annualized yield of 1.1% and a payout ratio of 30.72%.

Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 5.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,401 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,345 shares during the period. Sigma Investment Counselors Inc.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $9,861,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Aire Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. Aire Advisors LLC now owns 9,042 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,510,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Dumont & Blake Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Dumont & Blake Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,954 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,923,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. GSB Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. GSB Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,143 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $832,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Verum Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Verum Partners LLC now owns 1,059 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $411,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors now owns 3,575 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,388,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE CAT opened at $527.41 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $267.30 and a 1 year high of $544.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $247.08 billion, a PE ratio of 26.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.46. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $453.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $390.93.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.88 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.95% and a net margin of 14.95%.The firm had revenue of $16.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $5.99 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 20th will be paid a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 20th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.72%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Evercore ISI raised shares of Caterpillar from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $476.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 19th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $450.00 to $506.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, October 13th. DA Davidson raised their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $331.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $510.60.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Caterpillar news, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,166 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.29, for a total value of $8,673,808.14. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 448,173 shares in the company, valued at $226,457,335.17. This represents a 3.69% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total transaction of $952,840.00. Following the sale, the director owned 6,917 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,835,970. This trade represents a 25.15% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 55,985 shares of company stock worth $25,559,300 in the last three months. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar 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.

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