David Maclennan Buys 500 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Stock

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Director David Maclennan acquired 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $337.39 per share, for a total transaction of $168,695.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,738 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,935,943.82. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

David Maclennan also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, February 23rd, David Maclennan purchased 350 shares of Caterpillar stock. The stock was acquired at an average price of $323.37 per share, with a total value of $113,179.50.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CAT traded up $4.05 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $340.80. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 312,996 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,493,196. The firm has a market capitalization of $166.67 billion, a PE ratio of 15.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.19. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $351.89 and a 200 day moving average of $303.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $205.60 and a twelve month high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. The company had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. On average, equities analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.53%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 23.48%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on CAT. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Monday, January 8th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $270.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com lowered Caterpillar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $210.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $323.35.

Institutional Trading of Caterpillar

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Financial Council LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 1st quarter valued at about $209,000. SPC Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the 1st quarter worth approximately $238,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 260.7% in the 1st quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $403,000 after purchasing an additional 795 shares during the last quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,002 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,466,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WBI Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the first quarter worth $1,110,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.