Ransom Advisory Ltd Cuts Stake in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Ransom Advisory Ltd decreased its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 3.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,245 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 50 shares during the period. Ransom Advisory Ltd’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $483,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Compass Financial Services Inc raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 49.2% during the 1st quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc now owns 94 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Curat Global LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total transaction of $902,649.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,605,586.40. This trade represents a 20.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,168 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $412.87, for a total transaction of $7,088,152.16. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 482,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $199,211,839.35. This trade represents a 3.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 21,653 shares of company stock valued at $8,943,642 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $500.00 to $495.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 29th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $500.00 price target on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Friday, August 29th. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $331.00 to $388.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $475.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $457.20.

Caterpillar Trading Down 0.1%

NYSE:CAT opened at $431.10 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $420.04 and a 200-day moving average price of $365.49. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $441.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. The stock has a market cap of $201.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.41.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.88 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.95% and a net margin of 14.95%.The company had revenue of $16.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $5.99 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

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.