Exchange Traded Concepts LLC Cuts Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Exchange Traded Concepts LLC decreased its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 19.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 39,716 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 9,405 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $13,098,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Caterpillar stock traded down $4.17 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $356.79. The stock had a trading volume of 1,609,485 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,564,350. The firm's fifty day moving average is $327.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $348.25. The company has a market capitalization of $168.06 billion, a PE ratio of 16.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.37. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $267.30 and a 52-week high of $418.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

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 the consensus estimate of $4.35 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $14.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.64 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. The company's revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $5.60 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be paid a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%. This is an increase from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on CAT shares. Citigroup boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $320.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley raised Caterpillar from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $300.00 to $283.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Baird R W raised shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Caterpillar from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price target for the company from $309.00 to $395.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Caterpillar currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $372.92.

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.