West Oak Capital LLC Grows Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

West Oak Capital LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 16.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,287 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 765 shares during the period. West Oak Capital LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,937,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of CAT. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth about $1,660,560,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 28,603.5% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,494,018 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,417,360,000 after purchasing an additional 1,488,813 shares during the last quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 27,495.2% in the fourth quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 1,182,453 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $349,616,000 after purchasing an additional 1,178,168 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 19.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,264,635 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $947,875,000 after purchasing an additional 529,420 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 5,293.1% in the fourth quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 482,360 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $142,620,000 after purchasing an additional 473,416 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan acquired 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $337.39 per share, with a total value of $168,695.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,935,943.82. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.90, for a total value of $7,797,194.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 71,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,380,943.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director David Maclennan bought 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $337.39 per share, with a total value of $168,695.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 5,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,935,943.82. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $293.00 to $350.00 in a report on Friday, April 26th. HSBC lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Thursday, March 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price for the company. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $329.63.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT traded down $1.34 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $327.74. 2,119,834 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,717,345. The stock has a market capitalization of $160.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.12. 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 company’s fifty day moving average price is $339.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $330.08. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $223.76 and a 52-week high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.07 billion. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.84 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to reacquire up to 12.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. This is an increase from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 22nd. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.72%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is presently 23.48%.

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.