Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Stock Holdings Boosted by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 4.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,833,681 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 131,755 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 0.56% of Caterpillar worth $837,851,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CAT. Summit Trail Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 4,162 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,136,000 after acquiring an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. Peoples Bank KS purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter worth about $422,000. Mcdonald Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 3rd quarter worth about $216,000. Perfromance Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 13.4% in the third quarter. Perfromance Wealth Partners LLC now owns 20,178 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,509,000 after buying an additional 2,387 shares during the period. Finally, Choate Investment Advisors increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 20.3% in the third quarter. Choate Investment Advisors now owns 5,755 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,571,000 after acquiring an additional 973 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of CAT stock traded up $3.01 on Friday, hitting $354.79. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,210,787 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,729,460. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.83. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $205.60 and a fifty-two week high of $382.01. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $353.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $306.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $173.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.19.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.07 billion. Research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.79 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is 23.48%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $337.39 per share, with a total value of $168,695.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,738 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,935,943.82. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan purchased 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $337.39 per share, with a total value of $168,695.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 5,738 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,935,943.82. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 4,575 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.80, for a total transaction of $1,508,835.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 23,474 shares in the company, valued at $7,741,725.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. HSBC upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $290.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Thursday, April 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $323.35.

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.

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