Hennessy Advisors Inc. Sells 1,600 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Hennessy Advisors Inc. cut its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 18.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,000 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,600 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $2,309,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 46,809,540 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $16,980,629,000 after buying an additional 284,366 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,449,770 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,790,841,000 after acquiring an additional 236,315 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 9,081,775 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,294,505,000 after purchasing an additional 129,143 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Caterpillar by 11.8% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,847,330 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,483,937,000 after purchasing an additional 724,477 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $2,184,364,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan bought 375 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 6,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,133,617.10. This trade represents a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Caterpillar Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE CAT traded up $2.05 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $359.73. 1,999,937 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,548,757. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $267.30 and a 12-month high of $418.50. The firm has a market cap of $169.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.37. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $331.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $347.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.32.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced 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). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 53.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The firm had revenue of $14.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $5.60 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. 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 1.68%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on CAT shares. UBS Group upgraded Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the company from $272.00 to $357.00 in a report on Friday, May 16th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $335.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Truist Financial restated a "buy" rating and issued a $396.00 target price (up previously from $389.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Robert W. Baird upgraded 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 report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Six equities 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $372.92.

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.