First Affirmative Financial Network Makes New Investment in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

First Affirmative Financial Network bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 522 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $204,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 2.0% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,862,443 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,286,582,000 after buying an additional 75,973 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 5.7% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,069,840 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,022,488,000 after buying an additional 165,358 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 10.4% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,108,817 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $702,431,000 after buying an additional 198,123 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 6.3% during the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,020,100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $740,225,000 after purchasing an additional 119,326 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Wealth Planning LLC grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 6.4% in the second quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 1,381,453 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $460,162,000 after purchasing an additional 83,571 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James began coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Friday, June 28th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. StockNews.com cut Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $347.56.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT stock opened at $402.02 on Monday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $223.76 and a 52-week high of $403.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The stock has a market cap of $196.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a fifty day moving average of $357.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $349.26.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.53 by $0.46. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.88% and a net margin of 16.58%. The firm had revenue of $16.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.91 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $5.55 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be issued a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.40%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.46%.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares in the company, valued at $962,272.78. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Caterpillar news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total value of $1,018,878.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 15,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,347,825.20. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $338.59 per share, for a total transaction of $33,859.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $962,272.78. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 7,668 shares of company stock worth $2,665,760. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

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.