Horizon Wealth Management LLC Trims Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Horizon Wealth Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 5.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,537 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 136 shares during the period. Horizon Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $930,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Thompson Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the first quarter valued at $27,000. Partnership Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Vima LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Gilfoyle & Co LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CAT. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. HSBC increased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Raymond James started coverage on Caterpillar in a research report on Friday. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $329.63.

Caterpillar Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:CAT traded down $3.80 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $329.30. 1,678,796 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,711,953. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $340.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $329.47. The company has a market cap of $161.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.12. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $223.76 and a one year high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.12 by $0.48. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.07 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.84 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 22nd will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 22nd. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.71%. This is an increase from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.48%.

Caterpillar declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, June 12th that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to repurchase up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, Director David Maclennan acquired 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $337.39 per share, for a total transaction of $168,695.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,738 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,935,943.82. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Caterpillar news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total value of $512,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 20,023 shares in the company, valued at $6,807,820. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $337.39 per share, for a total transaction of $168,695.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 5,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,935,943.82. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.