Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Director Acquires $168,695.00 in Stock

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Director David Maclennan purchased 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $337.39 per share, with a total value of $168,695.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 5,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,935,943.82. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

David Maclennan also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, February 23rd, David Maclennan bought 350 shares of Caterpillar stock. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $323.37 per share, with a total value of $113,179.50.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT stock opened at $344.49 on Thursday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $205.60 and a 1 year high of $382.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The stock has a market cap of $168.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $352.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $305.22.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.12 by $0.48. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. The company had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.07 billion. Research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 23.48%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Thompson Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Fairman Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the first quarter worth $29,000. Partnership Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Vima LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CAT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Caterpillar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Citigroup increased their price target on Caterpillar from $255.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $290.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $323.35.

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.