Realta Investment Advisors Cuts Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Realta Investment Advisors decreased its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 1.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,388 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 41 shares during the quarter. Realta Investment Advisors’ holdings in Caterpillar were worth $869,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 39,534.0% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,136,667 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,356,930,000 after purchasing an additional 2,131,276 shares during the last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI increased its stake in Caterpillar by 4,018.6% during 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 in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 36,168.5% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 227,041 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $82,361,000 after buying an additional 226,415 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2.3% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,952,632 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,501,554,000 after buying an additional 205,012 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 34.4% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 782,133 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $305,908,000 after acquiring an additional 200,210 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total transaction of $3,800,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,173,226.38. The trade was a 18.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $398.57 per share, with a total value of $39,857.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,953 shares in the company, valued at $1,176,977.21. The trade was a 3.51 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on CAT shares. UBS Group upgraded Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research note on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $383.13.

Caterpillar Stock Up 1.9 %

Caterpillar stock opened at $365.54 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $307.05 and a 12 month high of $418.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $176.48 billion, a PE ratio of 16.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $378.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $371.22.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. On average, analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be given a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.54%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.56%.

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.