Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Mutual Advisors LLC

Mutual Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 6.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,600 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,301 shares during the period. Mutual Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $6,698,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 635,750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $231,686,000 after buying an additional 10,212 shares in the last quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 116,566 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $45,591,000 after acquiring an additional 6,212 shares during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 43.0% in the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 13,902 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,437,000 after purchasing an additional 4,181 shares in the last quarter. Cadinha & Co. LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $11,084,000. Finally, First Affirmative Financial Network acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the third quarter valued at approximately $204,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,664 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $378.84, for a total transaction of $1,009,229.76. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 12,951 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,906,356.84. This represents a 17.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at $17,173,226.38. This trade represents a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 33,868 shares of company stock worth $13,480,389 in the last ninety days. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of CAT opened at $397.68 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $379.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $368.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $192.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.44, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.13. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $287.52 and a twelve month high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.37 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.09% and a net margin of 16.26%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.52 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be given a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com downgraded Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $380.60.

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.