Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Increases Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. raised its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 13.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,302 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 1,748 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $5,552,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pacific Point Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at about $579,000. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in 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 buying an additional 2,519 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 32.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 11,311 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,730,000 after buying an additional 2,745 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 18.6% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 191,640 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $63,202,000 after buying an additional 30,070 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Grant Private Wealth Management Inc raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 46.2% in the first quarter. Grant Private Wealth Management Inc now owns 1,224 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $404,000 after buying an additional 387 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CAT opened at $491.67 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $443.23 and a 200 day moving average of $384.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $230.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.46. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $267.30 and a 12-month high of $511.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.88 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $16.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.14 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 14.95% and a return on equity of 48.95%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.99 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 20th will be paid a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 20th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is 30.72%.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total value of $902,649.70. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 8,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,605,586.40. This represents a 20.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total transaction of $952,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 6,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,835,970. This trade represents a 25.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 38,819 shares of company stock valued at $16,885,492 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on CAT shares. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $507.00 to $582.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $500.00 to $570.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $495.00 to $540.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $475.00 to $520.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $478.20.

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.