Bank of Nova Scotia Sells 64,218 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Bank of Nova Scotia reduced its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 15.8% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 341,679 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 64,218 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $242,067,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Diamant Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Caterpillar by 68,427.2% during the first quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,140,603 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,224,992,000 after acquiring an additional 3,136,020 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,225,317,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 573.1% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,504,612 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $861,947,000 after purchasing an additional 1,281,087 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 16.0% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 6,738,802 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,860,457,000 after purchasing an additional 928,974 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cynosure Group LLC raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 8,359.6% during the 4th quarter. Cynosure Group LLC now owns 513,754 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $294,314,000 after buying an additional 507,681 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $1,020.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $900.00 target price on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $769.00 to $879.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $900.00 to $1,045.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $980.57.

Caterpillar Trading Up 0.4%

CAT stock opened at $893.02 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $405.46 and a 12 month high of $1,073.46. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $928.87 and its 200 day moving average is $803.52. The company has a market capitalization of $411.32 billion, a PE ratio of 44.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.65 by $0.89. The business had revenue of $17.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.53 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 13.33% and a return on equity of 48.21%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 22.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $4.25 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 24.87 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 20th will be given a dividend of $1.63 per share. This is a boost from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.51. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 20th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.45%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Denise C. Johnson sold 12,605 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $907.91, for a total transaction of $11,444,205.55. Following the transaction, the insider owned 49,825 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,236,615.75. This represents a 20.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 24,222 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.92, for a total value of $22,354,968.24. Following the transaction, the insider owned 86,029 shares in the company, valued at approximately $79,397,884.68. This represents a 21.97% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 95,773 shares of company stock worth $87,642,635. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Caterpillar

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.