Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. cut its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 35,566 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 238 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $12,902,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $353,231,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar by 50,072.7% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 804,770 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $291,938,000 after acquiring an additional 803,166 shares in the last quarter. Amundi boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 17.3% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,166,087 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $782,109,000 after acquiring an additional 318,891 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 46,809,540 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $16,980,629,000 after purchasing an additional 284,366 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 4,018.6% in the 3rd quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 255,355 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $99,874,000 after purchasing an additional 249,155 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT opened at $341.83 on Tuesday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $307.05 and a 12-month high of $418.50. The stock has a market cap of $163.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.49, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The company has a 50-day moving average of $358.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $372.36.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. As a group, research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on CAT. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Caterpillar from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group upgraded Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $383.80.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total transaction of $860,147.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 6,275 shares in the company, valued at $2,225,742.50. This trade represents a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,173,226.38. The trade was a 18.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.