Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by GHP Investment Advisors Inc.

GHP Investment Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,202 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 45 shares during the period. GHP Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $799,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 635,750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $231,686,000 after purchasing an additional 10,212 shares in the last quarter. West Wealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth about $230,000. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 43.0% during 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 buying an additional 4,181 shares during the period. Cadinha & Co. LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $11,084,000. Finally, First Affirmative Financial Network purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $204,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $363.84 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $377.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $371.18. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $307.05 and a fifty-two week high of $418.50. The company has a market cap of $175.66 billion, a PE ratio of 16.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.12.

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

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on CAT shares. Evercore ISI raised shares of Caterpillar from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $365.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $438.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group raised Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the company from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $383.13.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of Caterpillar 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at $17,173,226.38. The trade was a 18.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $398.57 per share, with a total value of $39,857.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,953 shares in the company, valued at $1,176,977.21. This represents a 3.51 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Company 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.