Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Acquired by Markel Group Inc.

Markel Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 303,100 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,000 shares during the period. Markel Group Inc. owned approximately 0.06% of Caterpillar worth $89,618,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Gilfoyle & Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 3rd quarter worth about $41,000. Rational Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the third quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Milestone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the third quarter worth approximately $44,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total transaction of $6,899,070.88. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 61,092 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,886,667.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total transaction of $6,899,070.88. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 61,092 shares in the company, valued at $19,886,667.84. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 350 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $323.37 per share, for a total transaction of $113,179.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 5,238 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,693,812.06. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 35,769 shares of company stock valued at $11,508,906 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of CAT traded up $5.37 on Friday, hitting $343.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,324,221 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,496,459. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $350.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $300.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.87. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $204.04 and a fifty-two week high of $382.01. The company has a market capitalization of $171.48 billion, a PE ratio of 17.05, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.17.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. Caterpillar had a net margin of 15.41% and a return on equity of 56.99%. The company had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.07 billion. On average, research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.51%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is 25.82%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and upped their price target for the company from $293.00 to $350.00 in a research report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $210.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Evercore ISI downgraded Caterpillar from an "outperform" rating to an "in-line" rating and upped their target price for the company from $321.00 to $338.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Caterpillar from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $310.83.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CAT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.