First Financial Bankshares Inc Grows Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

First Financial Bankshares Inc increased its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. First Financial Bankshares Inc’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $782,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Park Edge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 19.9% in the third quarter. Park Edge Advisors LLC now owns 2,421 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $947,000 after acquiring an additional 402 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 9,572 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,744,000 after purchasing an additional 660 shares during the period. Valley National Advisers Inc. increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 347.7% during the 3rd quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 6,585 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,574,000 after purchasing an additional 5,114 shares during the last quarter. Amarillo National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.6% in the third quarter. Amarillo National Bank now owns 4,334 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,695,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Modera Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 1.8% during the third quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,942 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,715,000 after buying an additional 122 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,615 shares in the company, valued at $5,347,825.20. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $338.59 per share, for a total transaction of $33,859.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $962,272.78. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 15,615 shares in the company, valued at $5,347,825.20. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on CAT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Morgan Stanley lowered Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price target for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $380.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $355.50.

Caterpillar Price Performance

NYSE:CAT opened at $385.97 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $188.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s 50-day moving average is $368.57 and its 200 day moving average is $350.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $223.76 and a 12 month high of $403.60.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.53 by $0.46. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.88% and a net margin of 16.58%. The firm had revenue of $16.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $5.55 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be issued a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.46%.

Caterpillar Company 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.