Comerica Bank Has $45.73 Million Position in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Key Points

• Comerica Bank trimmed its stake in Caterpillar by 4.3% in Q3, ending the quarter with 95,837 shares valued at about $45.73 million after selling 4,265 shares.
• Caterpillar beat quarterly expectations with EPS of $5.16 (vs. $4.67 est.) and revenue of $19.13B (vs. $17.81B est.), a 17.9% year-over-year revenue increase, and analysts forecast roughly 19.86 EPS for the current year.
• Insiders have sold heavily—135,950 shares worth about $94.33 million in the past 90 days—while analyst coverage remains largely positive with a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating and an average price target of $730.50.

Comerica Bank lessened its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 4.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 95,837 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 4,265 shares during the quarter. Comerica Bank's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $45,729,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kilter Group LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1,060.0% in the 3rd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 58 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. RiverPark Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Joseph Group Capital Management bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the third quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 107.0% during the second quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 89 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Stock Down 1.0%

CAT stock opened at $693.89 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $267.30 and a 1-year high of $789.81. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $693.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $583.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $322.86 billion, a PE ratio of 36.87, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.54.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $5.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.67 by $0.49. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 45.76% and a net margin of 13.14%.The business had revenue of $19.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.81 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.14 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 17.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Rodney Michael Shurman sold 2,278 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $759.61, for a total value of $1,730,391.58. Following the transaction, the insider owned 1,443 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,096,117.23. This represents a 61.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 7,891 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $776.90, for a total transaction of $6,130,517.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 46,643 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,236,946.70. This represents a 14.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 135,950 shares of company stock worth $94,327,990 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on CAT. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $650.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $756.00 to $870.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $735.00 to $825.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $610.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $730.50.

Caterpillar Company Profile

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.

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