Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV Has $3.60 Million Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV lowered its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 6.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,919 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 701 shares during the period. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $3,601,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 38.3% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,218 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $805,000 after buying an additional 614 shares during the last quarter. Victrix Investment Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $2,090,000. Pacific Point Advisors LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $579,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 18.6% during 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 purchasing an additional 30,070 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 51.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,409 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,688,000 after purchasing an additional 2,519 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CAT opened at $371.63 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $338.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $346.61. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $267.30 and a 1-year high of $418.50. The firm has a market cap of $175.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.37.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be paid a $1.51 dividend. This is an increase from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.63%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.49%.

Insider Activity

In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan bought 375 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 6,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,133,617.10. The trade was a 5.97% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on CAT shares. UBS Group raised Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $272.00 to $357.00 in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Caterpillar from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $300.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $395.00 to $422.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, June 20th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $396.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price objective 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. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $380.83.

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.