Sound Financial Strategies Group LLC Acquires 261 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Sound Financial Strategies Group LLC raised its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 12.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,321 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 261 shares during the period. Sound Financial Strategies Group LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $842,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT opened at $326.45 on Wednesday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $307.05 and a 52 week high of $418.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $156.02 billion, a PE ratio of 14.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $364.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $372.98.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st were given a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.73%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on CAT shares. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group raised shares of Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $455.00 to $438.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $383.80.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,173,226.38. The trade was a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total transaction of $860,147.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares in the company, valued at $2,225,742.50. This represents a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Profile

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.