Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Raises Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 384.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 273,366 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 216,960 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $99,166,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,184,364,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $353,231,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 50,072.7% during the fourth 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 during the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 1,278.6% during the fourth quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 440,641 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $154,367,000 after acquiring an additional 408,678 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi boosted its position in Caterpillar by 17.3% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,166,087 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $782,109,000 after purchasing an additional 318,891 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE CAT opened at $293.82 on Friday. 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 company has a market cap of $140.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $267.30 and a 52 week high of $418.50. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $328.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $364.66.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be issued a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.92%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 25.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com cut Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $438.00 to $389.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Evercore ISI raised their price target 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. UBS Group upgraded Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $361.64.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total value of $860,147.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,225,742.50. This represents a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $365.57 per share, with a total value of $36,557.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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 currently owned by company 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.