Global Retirement Partners LLC Acquires Shares of 16,202 Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 16,202 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,290,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Compass Financial Services Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 49.2% during the first quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc now owns 94 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter valued at $32,000. Harbor Asset Planning Inc. bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Total Wealth Planning & Management Inc. bought a new position in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $560.05 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $262.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.75, a P/E/G ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.38. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $521.18 and its 200 day moving average is $438.34. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $267.30 and a one year high of $596.21.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $4.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.52 by $0.43. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 47.16% and a net margin of 14.34%.The business had revenue of $17.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.72 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $5.17 earnings per share. Caterpillar’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 20th were issued a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 20th. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $513.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. HSBC raised shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $405.00 to $660.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. UBS Group increased their price target on Caterpillar from $506.00 to $581.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $570.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $594.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $610.32.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 14,638 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $562.36, for a total transaction of $8,231,825.68. Following the transaction, the insider owned 80,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,106,333.24. The trade was a 15.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 10,707 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $563.60, for a total transaction of $6,034,465.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,649 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,874,576.40. This represents a 55.32% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 86,229 shares of company stock worth $43,323,118 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

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.