Webster Bank N. A. Grows Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Webster Bank N. A. lifted its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.4% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 14,619 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. Webster Bank N. A.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $5,357,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Waterway Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth about $352,000. Farmers Trust Co. grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Farmers Trust Co. now owns 4,490 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,328,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 19.4% during the 4th quarter. Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,825 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $540,000 after acquiring an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 20.0% during the 4th quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 21,343 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,310,000 after acquiring an additional 3,558 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 7.8% during the 4th quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 1,074 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $318,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT traded up $5.64 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $333.10. 8,891,479 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,519,845. The stock has a market capitalization of $162.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.14. 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 $340.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $328.57. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $223.76 and a 52-week high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.12 by $0.48. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.84 EPS for the current year.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 22nd will be issued a $1.41 dividend. This is a boost from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 22nd. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.48%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on CAT shares. Stifel Nicolaus cut Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $293.00 to $350.00 in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Raymond James started coverage on Caterpillar in a research report on Friday. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Citigroup started coverage on Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $380.00 price target on the stock. Finally, HSBC boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $329.63.

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.