OFI Invest Asset Management Makes New $40.84 Million Investment in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 116,574 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $40,839,000. Caterpillar makes up 1.0% of OFI Invest Asset Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Caterpillar by 0.7% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 729,654 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $285,382,000 after buying an additional 5,371 shares during the period. Summit Global Investments grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 6.7% in the third quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 1,843 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $721,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. Leavell Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Caterpillar by 18.9% during the third quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 14,178 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,545,000 after purchasing an additional 2,256 shares during the period. Finally, AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc now owns 97,282 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $38,037,000 after buying an additional 879 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Up 2.9 %

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $350.97 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $307.05 and a twelve month high of $418.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $167.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.90, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $363.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $372.77.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st were issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on CAT. Citigroup lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wedbush raised shares of Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. 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. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $383.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total transaction of $860,147.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,225,742.50. The trade was a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $365.57 per share, with a total value of $36,557.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 3,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,116,085.21. The trade was a 3.39 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.