Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. Purchases 190 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,578 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $7,267,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Gilfoyle & Co LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Rational Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CAT traded up $1.42 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $336.86. The company had a trading volume of 1,976,360 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,519,125. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $351.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $303.11. The stock has a market cap of $164.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.19. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $205.60 and a 1 year high of $382.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.12 by $0.48. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%. On average, analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.54%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 23.48%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on CAT. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $210.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price for the company. Finally, TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $323.35.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total transaction of $6,899,070.88. Following the sale, the insider now owns 61,092 shares in the company, valued at $19,886,667.84. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total transaction of $6,899,070.88. Following the sale, the insider now owns 61,092 shares in the company, valued at $19,886,667.84. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $323.37 per share, for a total transaction of $113,179.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 5,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,693,812.06. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.