Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Shares Sold by Advisors Asset Management Inc.

Key Points

• Advisors Asset Management Inc. decreased its holdings in Caterpillar by 36.7%, selling 6,124 shares, and now owns 10,584 shares valued at approximately $3.49 million.
• Analysts have set new price targets on CAT, with JPMorgan Chase & Co. raising its target from $475 to $520 and maintaining an "overweight" rating.
• Caterpillar announced a quarterly dividend increase from $1.41 to $1.51 per share, reflecting a yield of 1.4% and a dividend payout ratio of 30.72%.

Advisors Asset Management Inc. lowered its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 36.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 10,584 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 6,124 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $3,491,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Curat Global LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on CAT. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Caterpillar from $500.00 to $495.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 29th. Baird R W raised Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $383.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Melius Research upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $500.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $475.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $457.20.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total transaction of $902,649.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 8,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,605,586.40. The trade was a 20.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total value of $952,840.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 6,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,835,970. The trade was a 25.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 21,653 shares of company stock worth $8,943,642. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $423.09 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $198.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.41. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $267.30 and a 1-year high of $441.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $417.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $362.38.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.88 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $16.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.14 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.95% and a net margin of 14.95%.The business's revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.99 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st were issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. This is an increase from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.72%.

Caterpillar Company 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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