Canal Capital Management LLC Acquires 348 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Canal Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 28.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,554 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 348 shares during the quarter. Canal Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $518,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of CAT. Thompson Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Fairman Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new position in Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Partnership Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 15,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,347,825.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,347,825.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total transaction of $527,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 18,515 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,480,250. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $399.00 price objective (up from $390.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 10th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $385.00 to $376.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Citigroup assumed coverage on Caterpillar in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $380.00 price objective on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $336.31.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE:CAT opened at $356.10 on Friday. 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 twelve month low of $223.76 and a twelve month high of $382.01. The stock has a market cap of $174.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.12. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $338.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $342.75.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.53 by $0.46. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%. The company had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.91 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.55 earnings per share. Caterpillar’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.57 EPS for the current year.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 22nd were paid a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 22nd. This is a boost from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.46%.

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.