Norges Bank Buys New Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Norges Bank purchased a new position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 6,021,512 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,184,364,000. Norges Bank owned 1.25% of Caterpillar at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CAT. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 635,750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $231,686,000 after purchasing an additional 10,212 shares during the last quarter. West Wealth Group LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $230,000. Cadinha & Co. LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $11,084,000. Atomi Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 23,193 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $8,414,000 after acquiring an additional 871 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Copley Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the third quarter valued at $800,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.5 %

NYSE:CAT opened at $340.91 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $162.93 billion, a PE ratio of 15.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a 50-day moving average of $356.95 and a 200 day moving average of $372.24. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $307.05 and a 1-year high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now owns 3,053 shares in the company, valued at $1,116,085.21. This represents a 3.39 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total transaction of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,173,226.38. The trade was a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on CAT. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Raymond James upgraded Caterpillar from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup increased their price target on Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $383.80.

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.