Interchange Capital Partners LLC Increases Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Interchange Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 46.5% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 933 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the quarter. Interchange Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $311,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Partnership Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Thompson Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Caterpillar during the first quarter worth $27,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on CAT. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $380.00 price target on the stock. Barclays boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Bank of America dropped their target price on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $376.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $336.31.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,347,825.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 15,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,347,825.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total value of $527,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 18,515 shares in the company, valued at $6,480,250. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Caterpillar stock traded up $4.46 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $356.10. The company had a trading volume of 2,974,052 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,369,276. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $223.76 and a 12-month high of $382.01. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $338.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $342.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The company has a market capitalization of $172.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.12.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.53 by $0.46. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.88% and a net margin of 16.58%. The firm had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.91 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $5.55 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.87 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 22nd were paid a $1.41 dividend. This is an increase from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 22nd. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.46%.

Caterpillar announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share 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 repurchase up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Caterpillar 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.