Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Director Purchases $170,658.00 in Stock

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Director David Maclennan acquired 300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $568.86 per share, with a total value of $170,658.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 7,947 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,520,730.42. This trade represents a 3.92% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Caterpillar Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of Caterpillar stock traded up $0.49 during trading on Thursday, hitting $569.64. 1,738,161 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,806,746. The firm has a market capitalization of $266.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.51. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $267.30 and a 1-year high of $596.21. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $486.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $414.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $4.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $17.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.72 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.17 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Erste Group Bank upgraded Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Evercore ISI upgraded Caterpillar from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $476.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. Melius Research upgraded Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $500.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Caterpillar from $513.00 to $645.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $588.94.

Institutional Trading of Caterpillar

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Kilter Group LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 1,060.0% in the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 58 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc raised its position in Caterpillar by 49.2% in 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at about $32,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.