GWN Securities Inc. Buys Shares of 2,856 Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

GWN Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 2,856 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,036,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of CAT. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 729,654 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $285,382,000 after acquiring an additional 5,371 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 72,743 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,451,000 after acquiring an additional 3,051 shares during the period. Coastline Trust Co lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Coastline Trust Co now owns 6,376 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,494,000 after acquiring an additional 271 shares during the period. KPP Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $231,000. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 20,114 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,867,000 after buying an additional 291 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Up 2.1 %

NYSE CAT opened at $340.46 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $360.81 and a 200-day moving average of $372.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $162.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.15. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $307.05 and a 52 week high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was 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 directly owns 3,053 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,116,085.21. This trade represents a 3.39 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,225,742.50. This trade represents a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on CAT. Raymond James upgraded Caterpillar from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Citigroup raised their target price on Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America cut their target price on Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $383.80.

About Caterpillar

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.