Profund Advisors LLC Acquires 1,297 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Profund Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 13.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,692 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,297 shares during the quarter. Profund Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $4,151,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Aire Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Aire Advisors LLC now owns 9,042 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,510,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Dumont & Blake Investment Advisors LLC increased its position 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 acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 2,669 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,036,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Tsfg LLC increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 9.8% in the 2nd quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 279 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $108,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GSB Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.2% in the second quarter. GSB Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,143 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $832,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,168 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $412.87, for a total transaction of $7,088,152.16. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 482,505 shares in the company, valued at approximately $199,211,839.35. This represents a 3.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan bought 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $568.86 per share, with a total value of $170,658.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 7,947 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,520,730.42. This trade represents a 3.92% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 69,662 shares of company stock worth $33,575,140. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on CAT. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $612.00 to $680.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Bank of America raised their price target on Caterpillar from $594.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $560.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $570.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $596.59.

Caterpillar Stock Down 1.2%

CAT opened at $562.82 on Monday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $267.30 and a 52 week high of $596.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $491.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $419.59. The company has a market capitalization of $263.39 billion, a PE ratio of 28.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.51.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $4.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.52 by $0.43. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 47.16% and a net margin of 14.34%.The business had revenue of $17.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.72 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $5.17 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 20th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.01%.

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.