CSM Advisors LLC Sells 8,175 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Key Points

• CSM Advisors LLC has reduced its stake in Caterpillar Inc. by 24.2%, holding 25,665 shares valued at approximately $8.46 million after selling 8,175 shares.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.51, increasing from the previous quarter’s dividend of $1.41, representing an annualized yield of 1.4%.
• Caterpillar reported a quarterly EPS of $4.72, missing estimates by $0.16, with a revenue of $16.57 billion, slightly above analyst expectations.

CSM Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 24.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,665 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 8,175 shares during the period. CSM Advisors LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $8,464,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its position in Caterpillar by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 962 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $349,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Allen Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Caterpillar by 0.8% during the first quarter. Allen Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,010 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,322,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management Group Inc. raised its position in Caterpillar by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 10,771 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,907,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Summit X LLC raised its position in Caterpillar by 3.2% during the first quarter. Summit X LLC now owns 1,025 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $338,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Menard Financial Group LLC raised its position in Caterpillar by 1.0% during the first quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 3,174 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,019,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on CAT shares. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Caterpillar from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $476.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 19th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $460.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $272.00 to $357.00 in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Melius Research upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $500.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $331.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $450.87.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total value of $902,649.70. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 8,632 shares in the company, valued at $3,605,586.40. This represents a 20.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total value of $952,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 6,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CAT traded up $1.91 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $433.17. 1,970,924 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,433,062. The company has a market capitalization of $202.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.40. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $267.30 and a 1-year high of $441.15. The business's 50 day moving average is $410.05 and its 200-day moving average is $359.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st were issued a $1.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 21st. This is a positive change 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%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.72%.

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.