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

Key Points

• Securian Asset Management Inc. reduced its stake in Caterpillar Inc. ($CAT) by 2.9%, now holding approximately 24,590 shares valued at $9,546,000.
• Insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares for about $902,649, while Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,168 shares for approximately $7.09 million.
• Analysts have revised their price targets for Caterpillar, with Jefferies raising it to $570 and Barclays increasing it to $485, reflecting a positive sentiment towards the company's performance.

Securian Asset Management Inc. decreased its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 24,590 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 728 shares during the quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $9,546,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Caterpillar by 36,842.1% in the second quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,299,751 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,833,836,000 after buying an additional 7,279,991 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 6.7% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 4,204,445 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,386,626,000 after acquiring an additional 264,054 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,304,448 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,089,798,000 after acquiring an additional 15,347 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 9.1% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,229,080 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,064,951,000 after acquiring an additional 268,300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 5.0% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,141,936 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,036,211,000 after acquiring an additional 150,533 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider owned 8,632 shares in the company, valued at $3,605,586.40. This represents a 20.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,168 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $412.87, for a total transaction of $7,088,152.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 482,505 shares in the company, valued at $199,211,839.35. The trade was a 3.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 55,985 shares of company stock worth $25,559,300 in the last 90 days. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT opened at $531.80 on Tuesday. The company's fifty day moving average is $455.85 and its 200-day moving average is $393.23. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $544.99. The firm has a market cap of $249.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 1.46. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.88 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.95% and a net margin of 14.95%.The business had revenue of $16.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.99 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 20th will be paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 20th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is 30.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $500.00 to $570.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Melius upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $500.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $425.00 to $485.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Caterpillar from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $476.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 19th. Finally, Melius Research upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $500.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $515.40.

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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