Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Shares Sold by Verdence Capital Advisors LLC

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC trimmed its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 4.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,912 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 503 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $3,848,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Compass Financial Services Inc lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 49.2% during the first quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc now owns 94 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Maseco LLP purchased a new stake in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 109.1% during the 2nd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 115 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Caterpillar news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total transaction of $902,649.70. Following the transaction, the insider owned 8,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,605,586.40. The trade was a 20.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total transaction of $952,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,917 shares in the company, valued at $2,835,970. The trade was a 25.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,819 shares of company stock worth $16,885,492 in the last quarter. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $540.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $480.00 to $513.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $500.00 to $570.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Melius Research upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $500.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $478.20.

Caterpillar Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $491.67 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $443.23 and a 200-day simple moving average of $384.49. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $267.30 and a twelve month high of $511.50. 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 company has a market capitalization of $230.34 billion, a PE ratio of 25.01, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.46.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.99 earnings per share. Caterpillar’s revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 20th will be given a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 20th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is 30.72%.

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.