Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. Boosts Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 9.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 3,460 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,258,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 635,750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $231,686,000 after purchasing an additional 10,212 shares during the period. West Wealth Group LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at $230,000. Cadinha & Co. LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth $11,084,000. Atomi Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 23,193 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,414,000 after acquiring an additional 871 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Copley Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the third quarter worth about $800,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Down 2.8 %

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $329.65 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $157.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.15. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $354.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $372.50. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $307.05 and a 52-week high of $418.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on CAT. UBS Group raised Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $355.00 to $385.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James upgraded Caterpillar from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $383.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In related news, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $365.57 per share, with a total value of $36,557.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,053 shares in the company, valued at $1,116,085.21. The trade was a 3.39 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total transaction of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at $17,173,226.38. This represents a 18.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.