Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. Has $953,000 Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 3.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,436 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 94 shares during the period. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $953,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 17.2% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 9,037 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,308,000 after buying an additional 1,327 shares during the period. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of 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 during the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the first quarter worth $926,000. Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 3.5% during the second quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 278,259 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $92,688,000 after purchasing an additional 9,321 shares during the period. Finally, Bailard Inc. lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 3.1% in the second quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 13,435 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,475,000 after acquiring an additional 398 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $962,272.78. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,842 shares in the company, valued at approximately $962,272.78. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 15,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,347,825.20. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 7,668 shares of company stock valued at $2,665,760. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on CAT shares. Citigroup upped their target price on Caterpillar from $380.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Raymond James initiated coverage on Caterpillar in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. StockNews.com downgraded Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $347.56.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $402.02 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $357.45 and a 200-day moving average price of $349.26. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $223.76 and a one year high of $403.60. The stock has a market cap of $196.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 1.28.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.53 by $0.46. The company had revenue of $16.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.91 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.58% and a return on equity of 59.88%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.55 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.91 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.46%.

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.