Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Shares Sold by Cutler Investment Counsel LLC

Cutler Investment Counsel LLC reduced its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 19.8% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 37,823 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 9,331 shares during the period. Caterpillar makes up approximately 2.8% of Cutler Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Cutler Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $26,796,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Amova Asset Management Americas Inc. grew its stake in Caterpillar by 11.9% during the 1st quarter. Amova Asset Management Americas Inc. now owns 10,416 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $7,375,000 after acquiring an additional 1,110 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Wealth Managment LLC ID lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 32.0% in the 1st quarter. Legacy Wealth Managment LLC ID now owns 99 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Florida Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 626.4% in the 1st quarter. Florida Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,906 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,185,000 after purchasing an additional 5,093 shares in the last quarter. Swan Global Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 1st quarter worth approximately $236,000. Finally, AlTi Global Inc. grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1.1% in the first quarter. AlTi Global Inc. now owns 8,792 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,229,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on CAT shares. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on Caterpillar from $769.00 to $879.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Argus upped their target price on Caterpillar from $820.00 to $990.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. HSBC raised their target price on Caterpillar from $850.00 to $1,100.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Daiwa Securities Group boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $790.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $650.00 to $845.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $980.57.

Caterpillar Trading Down 1.8%

CAT opened at $864.72 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $398.28 billion, a PE ratio of 43.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.57. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $405.46 and a one year high of $1,073.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.35. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $930.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $796.99.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Investors of record on Monday, July 20th will be given a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 20th. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.51. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is 30.06%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 16,283 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $916.80, for a total value of $14,928,254.40. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 46,041 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,210,388.80. The trade was a 26.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 24,222 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $922.92, for a total transaction of $22,354,968.24. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 86,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $79,397,884.68. This trade represents a 21.97% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 95,773 shares of company stock worth $87,642,635. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.