Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Position Cut by Cerity Partners LLC

Cerity Partners LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 11.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 260,329 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 34,540 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $101,094,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kilter Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. RiverPark Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Harbor Asset Planning Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE CAT opened at $603.27 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $607.00. The company has a market cap of $282.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.57. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $542.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $453.24.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $4.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.52 by $0.43. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 47.16% and a net margin of 14.34%.The firm had revenue of $17.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.72 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.17 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 20th were given a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 20th. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is 31.01%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 8,184 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $570.18, for a total value of $4,666,353.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 41,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,669,312.16. This trade represents a 16.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,166 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.29, for a total value of $8,673,808.14. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 448,173 shares in the company, valued at $226,457,335.17. The trade was a 3.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 79,061 shares of company stock worth $41,949,366. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Argus upped their target price on Caterpillar from $460.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $485.00 to $555.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $610.32.

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.