Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Acquired by Secured Retirement Advisors LLC

Secured Retirement Advisors LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 44.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 11,836 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,643 shares during the period. Caterpillar accounts for 2.5% of Secured Retirement Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Secured Retirement Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $4,294,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.7% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,213,455 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,987,206,000 after purchasing an additional 67,148 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,952,632 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,501,554,000 after buying an additional 205,012 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in Caterpillar by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,627,513 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,418,793,000 after buying an additional 64,452 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,227,378 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,262,290,000 after acquiring an additional 8,088 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 39,534.0% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,136,667 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,356,930,000 after acquiring an additional 2,131,276 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 6,279 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $408.59, for a total value of $2,565,536.61. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 33,565 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,714,323.35. This trade represents a 15.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $365.57 per share, for a total transaction of $36,557.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,116,085.21. This represents a 3.39 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.1 %

CAT opened at $353.31 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $170.58 billion, a PE ratio of 16.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.12. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $307.05 and a twelve month high of $418.50. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $372.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $371.96. 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 released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share (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%. Sell-side analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 20.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CAT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Evercore ISI raised Caterpillar from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $365.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. StockNews.com raised Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $383.13.

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.