Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Shares Up 1.2% Following Dividend Announcement

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) shares shot up 1.2% on Wednesday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock traded as high as $393.53 and last traded at $392.76. 448,288 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 2,653,392 shares. The stock had previously closed at $387.96.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.43%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 25.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on CAT. UBS Group upped 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. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Raymond James initiated coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Friday, June 28th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $343.50.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $353.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $348.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The company has a market capitalization of $193.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.10.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.53 by $0.46. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.58% and a return on equity of 59.88%. The company had revenue of $16.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $5.55 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback 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 purchase up to 12.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total value of $527,800.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,480,250. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total value of $527,800.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,480,250. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $338.59 per share, for a total transaction of $33,859.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,842 shares in the company, valued at approximately $962,272.78. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 7,668 shares of company stock valued at $2,665,760. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Pacifica Partners Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.6% during the third quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 1,807 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $707,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Souders Financial Advisors increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.8% during the second quarter. Souders Financial Advisors now owns 3,657 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,218,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the period. Southland Equity Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 4.0% during the first quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC now owns 784 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $287,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Davis Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2.1% during the first quarter. Davis Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,454 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $541,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Finally, Hilltop National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.2% during the second quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 2,636 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $878,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Caterpillar Company 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.