First Trust Advisors LP Acquires 14,233 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 5.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 292,937 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 14,233 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.06% of Caterpillar worth $106,266,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,184,364,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $353,231,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 50,072.7% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 804,770 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $291,938,000 after acquiring an additional 803,166 shares in the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 1,278.6% during the 4th quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 440,641 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $154,367,000 after purchasing an additional 408,678 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 17.3% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,166,087 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $782,109,000 after buying an additional 318,891 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT traded down $0.53 on Friday, hitting $306.33. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,142,827 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,639,874. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $322.40 and its 200-day simple moving average is $361.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $418.50. The firm has a market cap of $146.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. Analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $365.57 per share, for a total transaction of $36,557.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total value of $860,147.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 6,275 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,225,742.50. The trade was a 27.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $430.00 to $320.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Raymond James upgraded Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group raised Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price target for the company from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Wedbush raised Caterpillar to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $359.36.

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.