Wesbanco Bank Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Wesbanco Bank Inc. decreased its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 7.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,120 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,757 shares during the period. Wesbanco Bank Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $10,077,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. BridgePort Financial Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $248,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 66,260 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,616,000 after buying an additional 1,561 shares in the last quarter. Edgemoor Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the third quarter valued at approximately $259,000. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 3.5% in the third quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 14,799 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,061,000 after buying an additional 497 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AlTi Global Inc. boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 10.8% during the third quarter. AlTi Global Inc. now owns 9,711 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,634,000 after acquiring an additional 950 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Caterpillar stock opened at $742.51 on Tuesday. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $267.30 and a fifty-two week high of $743.50. The company has a market capitalization of $347.48 billion, a PE ratio of 39.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $620.65 and a 200-day moving average price of $532.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.44.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $5.16 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.67 by $0.49. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 45.76% and a net margin of 13.14%.The company had revenue of $19.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.81 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $5.14 EPS. Caterpillar’s quarterly revenue was up 17.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 20th will be paid a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 20th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is 32.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAT has been the topic of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird set a $805.00 price target on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Friday, January 30th. Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $650.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Evercore lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $476.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 17th. Argus increased their price target on Caterpillar from $460.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and set a $678.00 price target on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Friday, January 30th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $690.90.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 22,656 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $720.11, for a total transaction of $16,314,812.16. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 79,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $57,574,954.83. This trade represents a 22.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed 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 that occurred on Wednesday, December 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $575.06, for a total transaction of $5,750,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 45,460 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,142,227.60. This trade represents a 18.03% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 130,545 shares of company stock valued at $88,294,733 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Company Profile

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company’s product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.