MBE Wealth Management LLC Boosts Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

MBE Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 9.9% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 788 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 71 shares during the quarter. MBE Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $260,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of CAT. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 6,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,133,617.10. The trade was a 5.97% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $360.23 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $333.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $346.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.77. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $267.30 and a one year high of $418.50. The company has a market cap of $169.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.56, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.37.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.35 by ($0.10). Caterpillar had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 53.77%. The firm had revenue of $14.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $5.60 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. This is an increase from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.68%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 27.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on CAT shares. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Caterpillar from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $300.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $272.00 to $357.00 in a research note on Friday, May 16th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $375.17.

Caterpillar 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.