Choreo LLC Sells 1,523 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Choreo LLC lessened its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 5.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 25,641 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,523 shares during the quarter. Choreo LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $8,456,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of CAT. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,184,364,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar by 43,447.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,730,259 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,230,239,000 after purchasing an additional 3,721,693 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its stake in Caterpillar by 69.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,924,054 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,060,730,000 after purchasing an additional 1,196,861 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Caterpillar by 11.8% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,847,330 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,483,937,000 after purchasing an additional 724,477 shares in the last quarter. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. increased its stake in Caterpillar by 1,278.6% during the 4th quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 440,641 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $154,367,000 after purchasing an additional 408,678 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on CAT. UBS Group upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $272.00 to $357.00 in a research note on Friday, May 16th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $331.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Melius raised Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $500.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $395.00 to $422.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $419.33.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT stock traded up $4.55 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $434.07. 2,207,764 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,516,496. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $434.87. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $377.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $351.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $204.47 billion, a PE ratio of 21.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.38.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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). The company had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.64 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 53.77%. The company's revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm 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 business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. This is an increase from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.39%. Caterpillar's payout ratio is 29.43%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David Maclennan bought 375 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the acquisition, the director owned 6,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $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 through this link. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

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.