BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S Boosts Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 32.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 158,615 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 39,017 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $57,539,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James raised Caterpillar from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $438.00 to $389.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley raised Caterpillar from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $300.00 to $283.00 in a report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $361.64.

Insider Activity

In other Caterpillar news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $365.57 per share, for a total transaction of $36,557.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 3,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,116,085.21. This trade represents a 3.39 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total value of $860,147.50. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 6,275 shares in the company, valued at $2,225,742.50. This trade represents a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of CAT opened at $293.82 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.89. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $267.30 and a 1-year high of $418.50. The stock has a market cap of $140.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $327.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $363.98.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. Equities analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.92%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.56%.

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.