Sunflower Bank N.A. Has $347,000 Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Sunflower Bank N.A. trimmed its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 4.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 948 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 40 shares during the quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $347,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Caterpillar by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 48,353,370 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $14,296,641,000 after buying an additional 129,216 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its stake in Caterpillar by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 29,029,953 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,583,372,000 after purchasing an additional 96,479 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Caterpillar by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,145,840 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,408,481,000 after purchasing an additional 179,908 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Caterpillar by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,962,809 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,900,847,000 after purchasing an additional 111,384 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,830,849 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,864,823,000 after acquiring an additional 47,258 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CAT traded down $2.08 on Friday, hitting $327.05. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,097,244 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,627,051. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $344.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $325.59. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $223.76 and a 1 year high of $382.01. The company has a market capitalization of $159.94 billion, a PE ratio of 14.78, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, June 12th that permits the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to purchase up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on CAT. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $293.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Friday, April 26th. HSBC increased their price target on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, Truist Financial began coverage on Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $323.35.

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.