Calamos Advisors LLC Buys 1,635 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Calamos Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 1.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 143,269 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,635 shares during the quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $47,250,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in CAT. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 38.3% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,218 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $805,000 after acquiring an additional 614 shares in the last quarter. Victrix Investment Advisors bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,090,000. Pacific Point Advisors LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $579,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 18.6% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 191,640 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $63,202,000 after acquiring an additional 30,070 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 51.5% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,409 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,688,000 after acquiring an additional 2,519 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on CAT. UBS Group raised Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $272.00 to $357.00 in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Morgan Stanley raised Caterpillar from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $300.00 to $283.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and set a $420.00 price target (up from $370.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on Caterpillar from $335.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $380.83.

Caterpillar Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of CAT stock opened at $399.33 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $267.30 and a 52-week high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $188.10 billion, a PE ratio of 19.46, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.38. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $350.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $346.79.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.35 by ($0.10). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 53.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The business had revenue of $14.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $5.60 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be given a dividend of $1.51 per share. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.51%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,653 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,133,617.10. This trade represents a 5.97% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.