Massachusetts Wealth Management Boosts Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Massachusetts Wealth Management lifted its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 6,457 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. Caterpillar comprises about 1.6% of Massachusetts Wealth Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Massachusetts Wealth Management’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $2,525,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fairman Group LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the first quarter worth about $29,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth $36,000. Finally, POM Investment Strategies LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 2,160.0% in the 2nd quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 113 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on CAT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. StockNews.com cut shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Raymond James began coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Friday, June 28th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $380.00 to $445.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $355.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total transaction of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 33,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Caterpillar news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total value of $1,018,878.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,347,825.20. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total transaction of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of CAT traded down $0.49 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $386.57. 408,832 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,616,428. The firm has a market cap of $189.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $367.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $350.86. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $223.76 and a 12-month high of $403.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.53 by $0.46. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.58% and a return on equity of 59.88%. The business had revenue of $16.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.91 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.55 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be issued a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.46%.

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.