Brown Advisory Inc. Sells 1,841 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Brown Advisory Inc. lowered its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 2.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 86,206 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,841 shares during the quarter. Brown Advisory Inc.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $28,431,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,184,364,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 43,447.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,730,259 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,230,239,000 after purchasing an additional 3,721,693 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 69.3% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,924,054 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,060,730,000 after purchasing an additional 1,196,861 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Caterpillar by 11.8% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,847,330 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,483,937,000 after buying an additional 724,477 shares during the period. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1,278.6% during the fourth quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 440,641 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $154,367,000 after buying an additional 408,678 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $335.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. UBS Group raised Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $272.00 to $357.00 in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Caterpillar from $395.00 to $422.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Finally, Baird R W raised shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $397.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In related news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 6,653 shares in the company, valued at $2,133,617.10. The trade was a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Caterpillar stock opened at $402.71 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $189.69 billion, a PE ratio of 19.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $357.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $347.63. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.35 by ($0.10). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 53.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The business had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.60 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be given a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. This is a positive change from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. Caterpillar's payout ratio is 27.49%.

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.

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