Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Stock Position Raised by Atlas Capital Advisors LLC

Atlas Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 1,041.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 331 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 302 shares during the period. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $121,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CAT. Partnership Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Thompson Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Vima LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT opened at $326.73 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $341.98 and its 200-day moving average is $328.08. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $223.76 and a 12 month high of $382.01. The firm has a market cap of $159.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 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 (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.07 billion. Equities analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to purchase up to 12.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 22nd will be issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. This is an increase from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 22nd. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.48%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.90, for a total transaction of $7,797,194.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 71,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,380,943.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.90, for a total transaction of $7,797,194.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 71,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,380,943.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total transaction of $512,720.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 20,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,807,820. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. HSBC upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Oppenheimer reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their target price for the company from $293.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Friday, April 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $329.63.

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.