Leavell Investment Management Inc. Has $5.21 Million Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Leavell Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,358 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $5,209,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 334.8% in the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 42.9% in the third quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 130.0% during the 4th quarter. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC now owns 115 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $398.57 per share, for a total transaction of $39,857.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 2,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,176,977.21. The trade was a 3.51 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were 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 owns 45,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,173,226.38. The trade was a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CAT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Caterpillar from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $438.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Caterpillar from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $365.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $383.13.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of CAT opened at $362.61 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $375.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $371.86. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $307.05 and a 52 week high of $418.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $175.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.12.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 20.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.56%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.56%.

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.