Woodline Partners LP Invests $10.52 Million in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Woodline Partners LP acquired a new position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 28,994 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $10,518,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CAT. 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 research report on Wednesday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. DA Davidson increased their target price on Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Truist Financial reissued a "buy" rating and set a $396.00 price objective (up previously from $389.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $375.33.

Caterpillar Trading Up 2.4%

Caterpillar stock traded up $8.23 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $351.62. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,488,129 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,633,861. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $267.30 and a 1 year high of $418.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $165.63 billion, a PE ratio of 15.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.35. The stock's fifty day moving average is $318.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $351.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

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 for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.35 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.64 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. Caterpillar's revenue for the quarter was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.60 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st were issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 21st. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.49%.

Insider Activity

In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the purchase, 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 filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

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.