American Century Companies Inc. Purchases 129,678 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 21.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 727,912 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 129,678 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned about 0.16% of Caterpillar worth $282,583,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter worth $32,000. Harbor Asset Planning Inc. purchased a new stake in Caterpillar during the second quarter valued at $34,000. Compass Financial Services Inc lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 49.2% in the first quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc now owns 94 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. Finally, Maseco LLP purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the second quarter worth about $45,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE:CAT opened at $550.74 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $518.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $435.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $257.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.27, a P/E/G ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.51. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $267.30 and a 12-month high of $596.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $4.95 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.52 by $0.43. Caterpillar had a net margin of 14.34% and a return on equity of 47.16%. The business had revenue of $17.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.72 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.17 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 20th were paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 20th. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is presently 31.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CAT has been the subject of several recent research reports. Argus boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $460.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $650.00 to $730.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $570.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price target on Caterpillar from $408.00 to $569.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $610.32.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, Director David Maclennan purchased 300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $568.86 per share, for a total transaction of $170,658.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 7,947 shares in the company, valued at $4,520,730.42. This represents a 3.92% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 14,638 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $562.36, for a total value of $8,231,825.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 80,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,106,333.24. The trade was a 15.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 86,229 shares of company stock valued at $43,323,118 over the last ninety days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Caterpillar

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.