Eukles Asset Management Buys 153 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Eukles Asset Management lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 1.1% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 14,547 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. Caterpillar comprises approximately 2.1% of Eukles Asset Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Eukles Asset Management’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $4,798,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Curat Global LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the first quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the first quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on CAT shares. DA Davidson increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. UBS Group raised Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $272.00 to $357.00 in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $395.00 to $422.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $380.83.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT opened at $399.33 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $351.96 and a 200 day moving average of $346.95. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $267.30 and a 52-week high of $418.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. The stock has a market cap of $188.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.46, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.38.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be issued a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.51%. This is a boost from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 375 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the acquisition, the director owned 6,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,133,617.10. This represents a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

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.