Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Acquired by Ewa LLC

Ewa LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 14.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 824 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Ewa LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $319,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Caterpillar during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Kimelman & Baird LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 42.9% in the 3rd quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT opened at $395.03 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $392.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $359.18. The firm has a market cap of $190.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.31, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.10. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $255.81 and a twelve month high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%. Caterpillar’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $5.52 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st were given a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley cut Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $372.19.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,664 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $378.84, for a total transaction of $1,009,229.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,951 shares in the company, valued at $4,906,356.84. This represents a 17.06 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.98, for a total value of $368,788.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,686 shares in the company, valued at $642,332.28. This represents a 36.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 23,868 shares of company stock worth $9,679,489 over the last ninety days. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.