Golden State Equity Partners Purchases 1,703 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Golden State Equity Partners raised its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 47.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,314 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,703 shares during the quarter. Golden State Equity Partners’ holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,752,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Pacific Point Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth about $579,000. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 51.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,409 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,688,000 after buying an additional 2,519 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 27.4% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 10,343 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,752,000 after buying an additional 2,225 shares in the last quarter. Edge Capital Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Edge Capital Group LLC now owns 3,410 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,237,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prasad Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at about $200,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $373.26 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $336.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $346.43. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $267.30 and a 52-week high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $175.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.37.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.62%. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is presently 27.49%.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 375 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 6,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,133,617.10. The trade was a 5.97% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on CAT shares. Baird R W raised shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $396.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $335.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded Caterpillar from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $300.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $380.83.

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.