Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Shares Purchased by Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd

Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 43.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 32,090 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,676 shares during the period. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $22,734,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CAT. Lam Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 220.0% during the fourth quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 48 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Monetary Solutions Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Denise C. Johnson sold 12,605 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $907.91, for a total transaction of $11,444,205.55. Following the transaction, the insider owned 49,825 shares in the company, valued at $45,236,615.75. This trade represents a 20.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 16,283 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $916.80, for a total value of $14,928,254.40. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 46,041 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,210,388.80. The trade was a 26.13% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 95,773 shares of company stock worth $87,642,635 in the last 90 days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on CAT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $1,125.00 to $1,165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Caterpillar from $900.00 to $1,045.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $1,103.00 price target on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Monday, May 11th. HSBC increased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $850.00 to $1,100.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $1,050.00 to $1,155.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $980.57.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $889.23 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $405.46 and a 1-year high of $1,073.46. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $928.88 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $804.12. The company has a market capitalization of $409.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.26, a PEG ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.57.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.65 by $0.89. The company had revenue of $17.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.53 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.21% and a net margin of 13.33%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $4.25 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 24.87 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Investors of record on Monday, July 20th will be given a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 20th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. This is a boost from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.51. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 32.45%.

Caterpillar Profile

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.