St. Louis Trust Co Makes New Investment in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

St. Louis Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 668 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $220,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Pacific Point Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $579,000. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 51.5% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,409 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,688,000 after acquiring an additional 2,519 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar by 38.3% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,218 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $805,000 after purchasing an additional 614 shares during the period. Fiduciary Group LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC now owns 2,278 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $826,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Finally, iA Global Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 18,836 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $6,833,000 after purchasing an additional 956 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Caterpillar stock traded up $1.24 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $413.44. 853,490 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,501,894. The company has a market capitalization of $194.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.32. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $369.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $349.62. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $267.30 and a 1 year high of $419.90.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be given a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. This is an increase from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is 27.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays increased their target price on Caterpillar from $335.00 to $383.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday. DA Davidson raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Melius Research raised shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $500.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Caterpillar from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $300.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Seven 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $415.53.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 375 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 6,653 shares in the company, valued at $2,133,617.10. This represents a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.