Financial Partners Group LLC Reduces Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Financial Partners Group LLC trimmed its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 8.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 24,136 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,319 shares during the period. Caterpillar accounts for about 3.6% of Financial Partners Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Financial Partners Group LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $8,755,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 12,657 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $410.25, for a total transaction of $5,192,534.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 71,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,171,646.75. This represents a 15.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,664 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $378.84, for a total transaction of $1,009,229.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 33,868 shares of company stock worth $13,480,389. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Up 2.3 %

Caterpillar stock opened at $406.87 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $196.44 billion, a PE ratio of 18.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.13. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $380.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $368.38. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $288.34 and a 12 month high of $418.50.

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

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be issued a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 26.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CAT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group raised their target price on Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Caterpillar from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $365.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $380.60.

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.