Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Shares Sold by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP has reduced its stake in Caterpillar Inc. by 2.9%, selling 93,762 shares in the first quarter, leaving it with over 3 million shares worth approximately $1.02 billion.
• Caterpillar announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.51 per share, up from $1.41, with a yield of 1.4%, reflecting a payout ratio of 30.72%.
• The company reported earnings of $4.72 per share for the last quarter, missing estimates, while its revenue was slightly up, indicating a decrease in year-over-year EPS from $5.99.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lessened its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 2.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,087,773 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 93,762 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 0.66% of Caterpillar worth $1,018,249,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its stake in Caterpillar by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 962 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $349,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management Group Inc. grew its stake in Caterpillar by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 10,771 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,907,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Summit X LLC grew its stake in Caterpillar by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. Summit X LLC now owns 1,025 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $338,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Caterpillar by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 3,174 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,019,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC grew its stake in Caterpillar by 21.3% during the 4th quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 205 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Caterpillar stock traded down $10.09 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $407.41. 3,105,803 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,193,540. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $267.30 and a twelve month high of $441.15. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $399.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $355.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.34. The firm has a market cap of $190.86 billion, a PE ratio of 20.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.40.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last posted 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). The business had revenue of $16.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.14 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 14.95% and a return on equity of 48.95%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $5.99 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm 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 $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. This is a positive change from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on CAT shares. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $395.00 to $422.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, June 20th. DA Davidson upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $331.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $414.00 to $507.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $460.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $444.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total value of $902,649.70. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 8,632 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,605,586.40. This represents a 20.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

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.