UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 8.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,940,391 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 312,878 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned about 0.82% of Caterpillar worth $1,429,416,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Voloridge Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth $7,546,000. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 19.6% in the 4th quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 4,272 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,550,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 48.0% during the 4th quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 21,529 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $7,810,000 after acquiring an additional 6,978 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at $10,518,000. Finally, Zimmer Partners LP lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 50.6% in the fourth quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 30,120 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $10,926,000 after purchasing an additional 10,120 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,133,617.10. This represents a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of CAT stock opened at $352.45 on Tuesday. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $267.30 and a one year high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $317.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is $353.57. The firm has a market cap of $166.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.35.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its 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). Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. The business had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $5.60 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is 27.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on CAT. UBS Group raised shares of Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $272.00 to $357.00 in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Caterpillar from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $300.00 to $283.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Baird R W raised shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Oppenheimer upgraded Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $395.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded Caterpillar from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $309.00 to $395.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $375.33.

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.

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