Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Has $5.67 Million Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Key Points

• Los Angeles Capital Management cut its Caterpillar stake by 81.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 41,624 shares and leaving it with 9,727 shares worth about $5.67 million.
• Caterpillar reported better-than-expected Q1 results, with EPS of $5.54 versus $4.65 expected and revenue of $17.42 billion, up 22.2% year over year.
• Despite recent insider selling and a stock price near its 52-week high, Wall Street remains broadly positive: analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus with an average price target of $933.27.

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC cut its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 81.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,727 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 41,624 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $5,672,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of CAT. Torren Management LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 220.0% during the 4th quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 48 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. IFS Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 47.4% during the 4th quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC now owns 56 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 140.0% during the 4th quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC now owns 60 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 16,283 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $916.80, for a total value of $14,928,254.40. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 46,041 shares in the company, valued at $42,210,388.80. This trade represents a 26.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 24,222 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $922.92, for a total value of $22,354,968.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 86,029 shares in the company, valued at $79,397,884.68. This represents a 21.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 95,773 shares of company stock worth $87,642,635 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Stock Up 1.2%

NYSE CAT opened at $915.27 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $836.25 and a 200-day moving average of $718.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $421.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.59. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $353.92 and a 52 week high of $946.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.35.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.65 by $0.89. The company had revenue of $17.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.53 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.21% and a net margin of 13.33%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 22.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.25 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 24.68 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 20th were given a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 20th. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on CAT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Caterpillar from $860.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $900.00 price target on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Morgan Stanley set a $915.00 price target on Caterpillar and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on Caterpillar from $769.00 to $879.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group raised their price target on Caterpillar from $790.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $933.27.

Caterpillar 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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