819 Shares in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Bought by MJP Associates Inc. ADV

MJP Associates Inc. ADV bought a new stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 819 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $242,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 272.4% in the 1st quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 108 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 730.8% during the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 108 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. First Capital Advisors Group LLC. purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the second quarter worth $30,000. CGC Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 4,575 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.80, for a total transaction of $1,508,835.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,474 shares in the company, valued at $7,741,725.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Caterpillar news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 4,575 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.80, for a total value of $1,508,835.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,474 shares in the company, valued at $7,741,725.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.10, for a total transaction of $3,101,000.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 57,317 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,774,001.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 45,769 shares of company stock valued at $14,509,306. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE CAT traded up $1.78 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $366.43. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,024,263 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,456,855. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $325.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $287.19. The stock has a market cap of $183.00 billion, a PE ratio of 18.11, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.16. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $204.04 and a 52 week high of $367.22.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $5.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.76 by $0.47. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 56.99% and a net margin of 15.41%. The business had revenue of $17.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.06 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.86 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on CAT. StockNews.com lowered shares of Caterpillar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Monday, January 8th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $270.00 target price on the stock. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $300.00 to $338.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $216.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $345.00 to $385.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $297.89.

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.