Aspiriant LLC Reduces Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Aspiriant LLC trimmed its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 1.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,889 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 41 shares during the quarter. Aspiriant LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,059,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Thompson Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the first quarter worth about $27,000. Partnership Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Vima LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Gilfoyle & Co LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the company from $293.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Friday, April 26th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $380.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $329.63.

Caterpillar Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $327.51 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.35. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $223.76 and a 52-week high of $382.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $160.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.14. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $340.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $328.07.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued 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. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.07 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.84 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

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

Caterpillar announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, June 12th that allows the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to buy up to 12.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total value of $512,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 20,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,807,820. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total value of $512,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 20,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,807,820. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $356.90, for a total value 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.