Wealth Watch Advisors INC Has $1.49 Million Stake in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Wealth Watch Advisors INC boosted its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,837 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 145 shares during the period. Caterpillar makes up 0.9% of Wealth Watch Advisors INC’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Wealth Watch Advisors INC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,490,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Aire Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 0.3% in the second quarter. Aire Advisors LLC now owns 9,042 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,510,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Dumont & Blake Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.5% during the second quarter. Dumont & Blake Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,954 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,923,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. GSB Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.2% during the second quarter. GSB Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,143 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $832,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Verum Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2.5% during the second quarter. Verum Partners LLC now owns 1,059 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $411,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.8% during the second quarter. Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors now owns 3,575 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,388,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Caterpillar news, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,166 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.29, for a total value of $8,673,808.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 448,173 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $226,457,335.17. This represents a 3.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total transaction of $952,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 6,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,835,970. The trade was a 25.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 55,985 shares of company stock valued at $25,559,300. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on CAT shares. Melius upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $500.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $517.00 to $594.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $505.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $518.19.

Caterpillar Trading Up 0.3%

CAT opened at $522.13 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $267.30 and a fifty-two week high of $544.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $244.60 billion, a PE ratio of 26.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.46. The company’s 50-day moving average is $464.46 and its 200 day moving average is $399.92.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.88 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.95% and a net margin of 14.95%.The business had revenue of $16.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $5.99 EPS. The company’s revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 20th will be given a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 20th. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.72%.

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.