United Capital Financial Advisors LLC Invests $47.04 Million in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

United Capital Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 44,175 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,042,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC now owns 1,635 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,741,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 944 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $936,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Bell Bank lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 0.6% during the second quarter. Bell Bank now owns 1,865 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,986,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 0.7% during the first quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC now owns 1,818 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,288,000 after buying an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Advisory Resource Group boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Advisory Resource Group now owns 1,632 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $935,000 after buying an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Joseph E. Creed sold 32,401 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $808.98, for a total transaction of $26,211,760.98. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 34,555 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,954,303.90. The trade was a 48.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $813.51 on Tuesday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $416.44 and a 12 month high of $1,073.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. The stock has a market cap of $373.95 billion, a PE ratio of 35.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.60. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $868.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $839.26.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The industrial products company reported $8.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.22 by $1.95. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 55.53% and a net margin of 14.51%.The firm had revenue of $20.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.72 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 27.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Investors of record on Monday, July 20th were issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. This is an increase from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.51. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 20th. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is 28.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on CAT. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Caterpillar from $1,050.00 to $1,155.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $1,002.00 target price on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Citigroup increased their price target on Caterpillar from $1,020.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Erste Group Bank cut Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $1,103.00 price objective on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Monday, May 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $995.52.

Caterpillar Company Profile

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company’s product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.