Private Advisor Group LLC Has $20.76 Million Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Private Advisor Group LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 95.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 70,208 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,540,922 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $20,758,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Gilfoyle & Co LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the third quarter valued at $41,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Rational Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter worth about $42,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Up 1.6 %

NYSE CAT traded up $5.40 on Monday, hitting $342.15. 1,653,389 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,509,182. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $205.60 and a 12 month high of $382.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The company has a market cap of $167.33 billion, a PE ratio of 15.45, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.19. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $352.22 and a 200-day moving average of $304.27.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.12 by $0.48. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.79% and a return on equity of 58.61%. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.07 billion. As a group, analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 23.48%.

Insider Activity

In other Caterpillar news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total transaction of $6,899,070.88. Following the sale, the insider now owns 61,092 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,886,667.84. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 4,575 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.80, for a total transaction of $1,508,835.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 23,474 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,741,725.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total transaction of $6,899,070.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 61,092 shares in the company, valued at $19,886,667.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on CAT. Evercore ISI lowered shares of Caterpillar from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $321.00 to $338.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. HSBC increased their target price on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $323.35.

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.