Acas LLC Reduces Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Acas LLC lessened its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,377 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 30 shares during the period. Acas LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $494,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CAT. Andra AP fonden increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 47.9% during the 4th quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 66,700 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $24,196,000 after buying an additional 21,600 shares during the last quarter. BBR Partners LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. BBR Partners LLC now owns 4,162 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,510,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar by 26.7% during the fourth quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 9,557 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,467,000 after acquiring an additional 2,014 shares during the last quarter. Callan Family Office LLC raised its position in Caterpillar by 495.0% in the fourth quarter. Callan Family Office LLC now owns 12,757 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,628,000 after purchasing an additional 10,613 shares during the period. Finally, EagleClaw Capital Managment LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. EagleClaw Capital Managment LLC now owns 17,150 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,221,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,173,226.38. This represents a 18.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total transaction of $860,147.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares in the company, valued at $2,225,742.50. The trade was a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Wedbush raised Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Caterpillar from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, DA Davidson raised their target price on Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $383.80.

Caterpillar Trading Up 0.7 %

NYSE:CAT opened at $340.89 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $307.05 and a 1 year high of $418.50. The stock has a market cap of $162.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.12. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $363.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $372.52.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st were issued a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 25.56%.

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.