LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC Purchases 1,208 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 157.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,974 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 1,208 shares during the quarter. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $716,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Caterpillar Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of CAT traded up $3.20 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $301.32. 274,021 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,620,356. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $267.30 and a twelve month high of $418.50. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $332.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $366.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The stock has a market cap of $144.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21.

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Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CAT has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wedbush upgraded Caterpillar to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America decreased their price target on Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Caterpillar from $438.00 to $389.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Raymond James upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $365.87.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

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