Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Reduces Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC trimmed its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 32.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 483,306 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 229,383 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC owned 0.10% of Caterpillar worth $160,989,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Private Trust Co. NA grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 10,695 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,919,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Southland Equity Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 4.0% in 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 in the last quarter. Davis Investment Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Davis Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,454 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $541,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Hilltop National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 2,636 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $878,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Exchange Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,016 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $372,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on CAT. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $380.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock 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 stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $376.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $336.31.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

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

Caterpillar Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE CAT traded down $4.20 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $329.36. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,676,623 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,680,938. The business’s 50 day moving average is $339.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $343.24. The firm has a market cap of $161.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $223.76 and a 12-month high of $382.01.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $5.55 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.87 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 22nd were paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. This is a boost from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 22nd. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is 25.46%.

Caterpillar declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, June 12th that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to reacquire up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.