Vicus Capital Takes Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Vicus Capital acquired a new position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,553 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $512,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Inscription Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,368,000. Stephens Consulting LLC boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 38.9% in the first quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 625 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $206,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 28.9% during the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 1,786 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $589,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Caterpillar by 5.4% during the first quarter. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. now owns 39,407 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $12,996,000 after acquiring an additional 2,031 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sentry LLC lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 8.9% in the first quarter. Sentry LLC now owns 19,904 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $6,564,000 after acquiring an additional 1,623 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 375 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 6,653 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,133,617.10. This trade represents a 5.97% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on CAT. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 19th. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $395.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup raised their target price on Caterpillar from $320.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $372.92.

Caterpillar Trading Down 1.3%

CAT stock opened at $357.85 on Wednesday. The business's 50-day moving average is $330.03 and its 200 day moving average is $347.62. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $267.30 and a 12-month high of $418.50. The stock has a market cap of $168.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.44, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last issued 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). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 53.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The firm had revenue of $14.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $5.60 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. This is a positive change from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.69%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.49%.

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.

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