Prio Wealth Limited Partnership Cuts Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Prio Wealth Limited Partnership lessened its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 38,521 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 150 shares during the quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $15,066,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Caterpillar by 17.2% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 9,037 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,308,000 after purchasing an additional 1,327 shares during the last quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC grew its stake in Caterpillar by 5.6% in the third quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 116,566 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $45,591,000 after purchasing an additional 6,212 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the first quarter valued at about $926,000. First Affirmative Financial Network purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the third quarter valued at about $204,000. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC grew its stake in Caterpillar by 3.5% in the second quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 278,259 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $92,688,000 after purchasing an additional 9,321 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other news, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 purchase, the director now owns 2,842 shares in the company, valued at $962,272.78. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 purchase, the director now owns 2,842 shares in the company, valued at $962,272.78. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total value of $1,018,878.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,347,825.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on CAT. Raymond James began coverage on Caterpillar in a report on Friday, June 28th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. UBS Group raised their price target on Caterpillar from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Barclays raised their price target on Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Caterpillar from $380.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $355.50.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT stock traded down $2.72 during trading on Monday, hitting $389.73. 414,615 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,632,396. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $363.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $350.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The company has a market cap of $190.60 billion, a PE ratio of 17.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $223.76 and a 1 year high of $403.60.

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

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 25.46%.

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.