Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Cutler Investment Counsel LLC

Cutler Investment Counsel LLC lessened its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 2.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 61,492 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,840 shares during the period. Caterpillar comprises about 2.4% of Cutler Investment Counsel LLC's holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Cutler Investment Counsel LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $20,280,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Pacific Point Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at $579,000. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 51.5% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,409 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,688,000 after buying an additional 2,519 shares during the last quarter. DnB Asset Management AS boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 23.6% during the 4th quarter. DnB Asset Management AS now owns 1,536 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $557,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 72.2% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 88,936 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $32,262,000 after buying an additional 37,282 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 223.1% in the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 252 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $91,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on CAT shares. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $396.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $395.00 to $475.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $395.00 to $483.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $272.00 to $357.00 in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $420.00 price target (up previously from $370.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $419.33.

Caterpillar Stock Down 2.1%

CAT stock traded down $9.17 during trading on Friday, hitting $428.85. 4,027,319 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,706,497. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $383.95 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $353.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $202.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.90, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.38. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $267.30 and a 52-week high of $441.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be given a $1.51 dividend. This is an increase from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.43%.

Insider Activity

In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan bought 375 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 6,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,133,617.10. This represents a 5.97% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.