International Assets Investment Management LLC Buys 127 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.5% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 5,180 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,884,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar by 7.9% in the third quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 14,207 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,879,000 after buying an additional 1,041 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its stake in Caterpillar by 11.8% in the third quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 167,324 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $45,679,000 after buying an additional 17,689 shares in the last quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the third quarter worth about $225,000. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 4.1% in the third quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 15,373 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,197,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the period. Finally, Eagle Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 176.9% in the third quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 27,357 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,468,000 after purchasing an additional 17,478 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $327.84 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $343.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $327.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $160.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.80, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $223.76 and a 52 week high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%. On average, analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, June 12th that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to reacquire up to 12.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 22nd will be issued a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 22nd. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.48%.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total transaction of $512,720.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 20,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,807,820. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total value of $512,720.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 20,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,807,820. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $337.39 per share, for a total transaction of $168,695.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,738 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,943.82. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CAT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. TD Cowen increased their price target on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $327.13.

Caterpillar Company 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.