Avion Wealth Acquires 203 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Avion Wealth grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 70.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 491 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 203 shares during the quarter. Avion Wealth’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $177,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Caterpillar in the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 334.8% during the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 42.9% in the 3rd quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 130.0% in the 4th quarter. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC now owns 115 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 6,279 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $408.59, for a total transaction of $2,565,536.61. Following the sale, the insider now owns 33,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,714,323.35. This trade represents a 15.76 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total transaction of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,173,226.38. This represents a 18.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT opened at $362.61 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $375.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $371.86. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $307.05 and a 12 month high of $418.50. The firm has a market cap of $175.07 billion, a PE ratio of 16.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. Equities research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 20.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is presently 25.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on CAT. StockNews.com raised shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Citigroup lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price target on Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $383.13.

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.