Liberty One Investment Management LLC Raises Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Liberty One Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 29.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 18,327 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,159 shares during the quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $8,745,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Marquette Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 1,060.0% during the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 58 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management bought a new position in Caterpillar during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Kilter Group LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Caterpillar Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $629.52 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $294.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.38. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $580.50 and a 200-day moving average price of $496.54. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $267.30 and a 52-week high of $630.98.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The industrial products company reported $4.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.52 by $0.43. The company 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%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $5.17 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 20th will be paid a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 20th. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.01%.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $575.06, for a total transaction of $5,750,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 45,460 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,142,227.60. This trade represents a 18.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 14,638 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $562.36, for a total value of $8,231,825.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 80,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,106,333.24. This represents a 15.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 54,729 shares of company stock worth $31,084,308 over the last 90 days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on CAT shares. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $570.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. HSBC raised Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $405.00 to $660.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $408.00 to $569.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $650.00 to $730.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $618.70.

About Caterpillar

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company’s product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.