BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S Buys 39,017 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S boosted its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 32.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 158,615 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 39,017 shares during the quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $57,539,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Trading Up 2.1 %

Shares of Caterpillar stock traded up $6.20 on Wednesday, reaching $297.37. The company had a trading volume of 1,340,703 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,634,988. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $324.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $362.29. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $267.30 and a 1 year high of $418.50. The firm has a market cap of $142.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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, research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.90%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.56%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was purchased 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 $1,116,085.21. This trade represents a 3.39 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the company's 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now 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. Insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $430.00 to $320.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. DA Davidson cut their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $357.00 to $325.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Raymond James raised Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Caterpillar from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $300.00 to $283.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $359.36.

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.