Wiley BROS. Aintree Capital LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Wiley BROS. Aintree Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,642 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Wiley BROS. Aintree Capital LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $896,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Premier Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Premier Asset Management LLC now owns 1,418 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $340,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Enterprise Financial Services Corp increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Enterprise Financial Services Corp now owns 1,397 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $335,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Private Ocean LLC raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 30.9% in the 1st quarter. Private Ocean LLC now owns 195 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 10,734 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,572,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Finally, McElhenny Sheffield Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 2.3% during the first quarter. McElhenny Sheffield Capital Management LLC now owns 2,062 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $472,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.20% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on CAT shares. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $287.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $275.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 2nd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 2nd. Credit Suisse Group increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $279.00 to $334.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 2nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $183.00 to $234.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $267.00.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of Caterpillar stock traded up $5.75 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $281.67. The stock had a trading volume of 755,534 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,066,380. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $271.46 and its 200 day moving average is $241.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $160.60 and a twelve month high of $293.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $143.68 billion, a PE ratio of 17.35, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.13.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $5.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.57 by $0.98. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 55.93% and a net margin of 12.91%. The company had revenue of $17.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.46 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.18 EPS. Caterpillar’s quarterly revenue was up 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 6,415 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total value of $1,667,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 16,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,254,120. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Caterpillar news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 6,415 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total transaction of $1,667,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 16,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,254,120. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total value of $5,500,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 53,671 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,759,525. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 54,918 shares of company stock worth $15,299,870 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

About Caterpillar

Caterpillar, Inc engages in the manufacture of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, and diesel-electric locomotives. It operates through the following segments: Construction Industries, Resource Industries, Energy and Transportation, Financial Products, and All Other.