Great Lakes Advisors LLC Purchases 6,087 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Great Lakes Advisors LLC raised its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT – Get Rating) by 33.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 24,511 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,087 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $5,461,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth $1,103,021,000. Capital World Investors increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 11.6% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 13,262,687 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,741,910,000 after acquiring an additional 1,373,656 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 15.2% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,864,120 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,005,607,000 after acquiring an additional 643,392 shares in the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the first quarter worth $102,439,000. Finally, Shellback Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth $62,022,000. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Joseph E. Creed sold 2,757 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.13, for a total value of $590,356.41. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the subject of several research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $240.00 to $227.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 13th. Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $255.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $250.00 to $205.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 12th. Robert W. Baird restated an “outperform” rating and set a $280.00 target price on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Thursday, May 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $161.00 to $142.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $225.27.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT stock opened at $185.39 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $97.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $191.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $203.92. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $167.08 and a one year high of $237.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 0.93.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 2nd. The industrial products company reported $3.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.01 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.39 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 12.50% and a return on equity of 37.29%. The company’s revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.60 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 12.7 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 20th will be given a $1.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 19th. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.11. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.59%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.40%.

Caterpillar Company Profile

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Caterpillar Inc manufactures and sells construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, and industrial gas turbines worldwide. Its Construction Industries segment offers asphalt pavers, backhoe loaders, compactors, cold planers, compact track and multi-terrain loaders, excavators, motorgraders, pipelayers, road reclaimers, site prep tractors, skid steer loaders, telehandlers, and utility vehicles; mini, small, medium, and large excavators; compact, small, and medium wheel loaders; track-type tractors and loaders; and wheel excavators.