Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Shares Sold by Northern Financial Advisors Inc

Northern Financial Advisors Inc reduced its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 48.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,671 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 2,498 shares during the period. Caterpillar makes up approximately 1.7% of Northern Financial Advisors Inc's investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Northern Financial Advisors Inc's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,530,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Marquette Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1,060.0% during the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 58 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. IFS Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the third quarter valued at $32,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 47.4% during the fourth quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC now owns 56 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the period. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 140.0% during the fourth quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC now owns 60 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CAT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating and set a $960.00 target price on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Tuesday. Argus boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $625.00 to $820.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 21st. CICC Research initiated coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Friday, February 6th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $569.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $761.64.

Caterpillar Stock Up 0.5%

CAT opened at $798.76 on Tuesday. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $282.46 and a fifty-two week high of $801.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.44. The company has a fifty day moving average of $736.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $638.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $371.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.44, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.52.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $5.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.67 by $0.49. The company had revenue of $19.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.81 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 13.14% and a return on equity of 45.76%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 17.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.14 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 22.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 20th will be paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 20th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Caterpillar's payout ratio is currently 32.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 22,656 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $720.11, for a total transaction of $16,314,812.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 79,953 shares of the company's stock, valued at $57,574,954.83. The trade was a 22.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 972 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $764.20, for a total transaction of $742,802.40. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 824 shares of the company's stock, valued at $629,700.80. This represents a 54.12% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 125,950 shares of company stock valued at $88,577,390. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

About Caterpillar

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company's product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.