RB Capital Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

RB Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,563 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar accounts for approximately 0.9% of RB Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. RB Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $3,740,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 116,566 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $45,591,000 after acquiring an additional 6,212 shares in the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its position in Caterpillar by 43.0% in the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 13,902 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,437,000 after acquiring an additional 4,181 shares in the last quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $204,000. Inspire Advisors LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 25.8% in the 3rd quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 8,266 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,233,000 after acquiring an additional 1,694 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jackson Square Capital LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 33.7% in the 3rd quarter. Jackson Square Capital LLC now owns 16,581 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,485,000 after acquiring an additional 4,182 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of CAT stock opened at $399.34 on Tuesday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $259.12 and a 52-week high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $192.80 billion, a PE ratio of 18.51, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.10. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $393.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $359.52.

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

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 21st were paid a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.41%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is presently 26.15%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.98, for a total transaction of $368,788.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,686 shares in the company, valued at $642,332.28. This trade represents a 36.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 12,657 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $410.25, for a total value of $5,192,534.25. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 71,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,171,646.75. The trade was a 15.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 23,868 shares of company stock worth $9,679,489 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on CAT. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley cut Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. Citigroup increased their price target on Caterpillar from $435.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $374.69.

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.