Blue Trust Inc. Increases Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 14.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 18,083 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,294 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $7,073,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Mogy Joel R Investment Counsel Inc. grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. Mogy Joel R Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,304 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $510,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. West Oak Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.8% during the third quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 5,267 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,060,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 11.1% in the 3rd quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,102 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $431,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,114 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,985,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC now owns 10,412 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,072,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $380.00 to $445.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Barclays upped their price target on Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. StockNews.com lowered Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Caterpillar from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $355.50.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT stock opened at $393.84 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $223.76 and a 12 month high of $403.60. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $363.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $350.44. The stock has a market cap of $192.61 billion, a PE ratio of 17.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.53 by $0.46. The business had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.91 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.88% and a net margin of 16.58%. The business’s revenue was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.55 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be paid a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.46%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total value of $1,018,878.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 15,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,347,825.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Caterpillar news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 15,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,347,825.20. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total transaction of $1,119,081.60. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 33,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,750,181.12. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar 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.