Romano Brothers AND Company Trims Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Romano Brothers AND Company decreased its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,077 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 501 shares during the period. Caterpillar makes up about 0.9% of Romano Brothers AND Company’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Romano Brothers AND Company’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $6,624,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Partnership Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Thompson Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Vima LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CAT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup initiated coverage on Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $380.00 target price on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on Caterpillar in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price on the stock. HSBC raised their target price on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $329.63.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $333.10 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $162.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.14. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $340.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $329.04. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $223.76 and a 1-year 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.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. Analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 22nd. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is presently 25.46%.

Caterpillar announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 12th that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to buy up to 12.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.90, for a total transaction of $7,797,194.30. Following the sale, the insider now owns 71,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,380,943.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.90, for a total transaction of $7,797,194.30. Following the sale, the insider now owns 71,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,380,943.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director David Maclennan purchased 500 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $337.39 per share, for a total transaction of $168,695.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,935,943.82. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

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.