Northern Financial Advisors Inc Purchases 319 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Northern Financial Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 6.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,196 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 319 shares during the period. Caterpillar comprises 1.3% of Northern Financial Advisors Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Northern Financial Advisors Inc’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,536,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its position in Caterpillar by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 789 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $233,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Lodestar Private Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Lodestar Private Asset Management LLC now owns 830 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $245,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,616 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $774,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,507 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,037,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Finally, ACT Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. ACT Wealth Management LLC now owns 877 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $259,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of Caterpillar stock traded down $1.02 on Wednesday, hitting $343.98. The company had a trading volume of 819,448 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,483,740. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $205.60 and a twelve month high of $382.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $352.57 and a 200-day moving average of $304.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $168.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.19.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.12 by $0.48. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.07 billion. Research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.48%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on CAT. StockNews.com lowered shares of Caterpillar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price for the company. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $255.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $293.00 to $350.00 in a report on Friday, April 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $323.35.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan acquired 500 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $337.39 per share, for a total transaction of $168,695.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,935,943.82. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Caterpillar news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 4,575 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.80, for a total value of $1,508,835.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 23,474 shares in the company, valued at $7,741,725.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director David Maclennan acquired 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $337.39 per share, for a total transaction of $168,695.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,738 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,943.82. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.