First National Trust Co Grows Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

First National Trust Co increased its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 49,442 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 477 shares during the quarter. First National Trust Co’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $17,936,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Albion Financial Group UT grew its position in Caterpillar by 334.8% in the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT opened at $333.26 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $159.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.10, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a fifty day moving average of $361.27 and a 200 day moving average of $372.42. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $307.05 and a fifty-two week high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total transaction of $860,147.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,225,742.50. This represents a 27.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total transaction of $3,800,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,173,226.38. This trade represents a 18.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. UBS Group raised shares of Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Wedbush raised shares of Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $455.00 to $438.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $383.80.

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.