New Mexico Educational Retirement Board Has $8.38 Million Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

New Mexico Educational Retirement Board lessened its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 3.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 23,102 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 800 shares during the quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $8,380,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. now owns 2,256 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $818,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 19,935 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $7,232,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares during the period. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. now owns 4,915 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,941,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the period. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $393,000. Finally, Banque Pictet & Cie SA raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 2,377.0% in the 4th quarter. Banque Pictet & Cie SA now owns 13,921 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,050,000 after purchasing an additional 13,359 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $353.31 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 cap of $170.58 billion, a PE ratio of 16.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.12. The business has a 50 day moving average of $373.30 and a 200-day moving average of $371.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 20.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Caterpillar from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their target price on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $438.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $383.13.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $398.57 per share, for a total transaction of $39,857.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 2,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,176,977.21. This represents a 3.51 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 6,279 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $408.59, for a total value of $2,565,536.61. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 33,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,714,323.35. This trade represents a 15.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.