Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC

Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC lessened its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,004 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 146 shares during the quarter. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $2,541,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the third quarter worth about $36,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 42.9% in the third quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $54,000. Finally, SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 47.2% during the 3rd quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 156 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CAT. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Caterpillar from $500.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $454.00 to $471.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $435.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $384.33.

Caterpillar Trading Down 2.7 %

Shares of Caterpillar stock traded down $9.74 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $351.33. The stock had a trading volume of 952,303 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,521,093. The firm has a market cap of $169.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $382.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $365.00. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $276.94 and a 12-month high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%. The company had revenue of $16.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.52 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.61%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.15%.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 6,279 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $408.59, for a total value of $2,565,536.61. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 33,565 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,714,323.35. This represents a 15.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,664 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $378.84, for a total transaction of $1,009,229.76. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,906,356.84. This represents a 17.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 23,868 shares of company stock valued at $9,679,489. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.