Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. Raises Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2,654.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 171,265 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 165,048 shares during the period. Symphony Financial Ltd. Co.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $66,568,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Aire Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.3% during the second quarter. Aire Advisors LLC now owns 9,042 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,510,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Dumont & Blake Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.5% in the second quarter. Dumont & Blake Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,954 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,923,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.9% during the second quarter. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 2,669 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,036,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Tsfg LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 9.8% during the second quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 279 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $108,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, GSB Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. GSB Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,143 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $832,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 10,707 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $563.60, for a total value of $6,034,465.20. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,649 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,874,576.40. This represents a 55.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,168 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $412.87, for a total transaction of $7,088,152.16. Following the sale, the chairman owned 482,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $199,211,839.35. This trade represents a 3.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 86,229 shares of company stock worth $43,323,118 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE:CAT opened at $552.74 on Monday. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $267.30 and a twelve month high of $596.21. The company has a market capitalization of $258.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $506.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $428.62.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $4.95 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.52 by $0.43. The firm had revenue of $17.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.72 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 47.16% and a net margin of 14.34%.Caterpillar’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.17 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 20th will be given a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 20th. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on CAT. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $350.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $612.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on Caterpillar in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $560.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group increased their target price on Caterpillar from $506.00 to $581.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $594.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $600.94.

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.