Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Boosts Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. grew its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 20.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,421 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 924 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,806,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Caterpillar by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 48,353,370 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $14,296,641,000 after acquiring an additional 129,216 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its stake in Caterpillar by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 29,029,953 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,583,372,000 after purchasing an additional 96,479 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,139,040 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,406,471,000 after purchasing an additional 173,108 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,660,560,000. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 6.3% in the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,020,100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $740,225,000 after buying an additional 119,326 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $962,272.78. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,615 shares in the company, valued at $5,347,825.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $962,272.78. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 7,668 shares of company stock worth $2,665,760. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CAT has been the subject of several research reports. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $385.00 to $376.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. StockNews.com lowered Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Barclays boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $399.00 price target (up from $390.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Raymond James assumed coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Friday, June 28th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $336.31.

Caterpillar Stock Up 0.3 %

NYSE CAT opened at $335.00 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $340.18 and its 200 day moving average is $343.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $163.83 billion, a PE ratio of 15.12, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 0.78. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $223.76 and a 1 year high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.53 by $0.46. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.88% and a net margin of 16.58%. The firm had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.91 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $5.55 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, June 12th that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to repurchase up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.