Westerkirk Capital Inc. Increases Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Key Points

• Westerkirk Capital boosted its Caterpillar stake by 71% in the fourth quarter, buying 4,914 more shares and ending with 11,832 shares valued at about $6.78 million.
• Caterpillar reported a strong quarter, with EPS of $5.54 and revenue of $17.42 billion, both ahead of analyst expectations; revenue also rose 22.2% year over year.
• Analysts remain upbeat on CAT, with several raising price targets and the stock holding a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating, while insiders have recently sold shares, including CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield.

Westerkirk Capital Inc. increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 71.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,832 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 4,914 shares during the quarter. Westerkirk Capital Inc.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $6,778,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at $81,000. Waddell & Associates LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth $393,000. Fox Run Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth $694,000. TIAA Trust National Association grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 22,727 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $13,020,000 after purchasing an additional 314 shares during the period. Finally, Montis Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Montis Financial LLC now owns 3,767 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,158,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Stock Up 1.2%

Caterpillar stock opened at $915.27 on Tuesday. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $353.92 and a twelve month high of $946.83. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $836.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $718.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $421.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.56, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.59.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.65 by $0.89. The business had revenue of $17.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.53 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.21% and a net margin of 13.33%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 22.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.25 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 24.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Investors of record on Monday, April 20th were issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 20th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Caterpillar's payout ratio is currently 30.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on CAT shares. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $940.00 to $1,165.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Caterpillar from $860.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their price target on Caterpillar from $700.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Caterpillar from $900.00 to $1,045.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer set a $980.00 price target on Caterpillar and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $933.27.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 15,674 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $918.71, for a total transaction of $14,399,860.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 52,935 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $48,631,913.85. The trade was a 22.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 5,642 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $883.03, for a total value of $4,982,055.26. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,594 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,471,789.82. The trade was a 37.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 95,773 shares of company stock valued at $87,642,635 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Profile

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company's product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.

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