Mariner LLC Purchases 6,261 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Mariner LLC increased its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 231,214 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,261 shares during the quarter. Mariner LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $83,875,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT opened at $298.07 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The stock has a market cap of $142.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $332.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $366.35. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $267.30 and a 52 week high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.89%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 25.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated 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 purchase, the director now directly owns 3,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,116,085.21. This trade represents a 3.39 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at $17,173,226.38. This trade represents a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on CAT shares. UBS Group upgraded Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Wedbush upgraded shares of Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Raymond James upgraded Caterpillar from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $365.87.

Caterpillar 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.