Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Trims Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System decreased its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,800 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 900 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $9,628,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Compass Financial Services Inc raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 49.2% during the 1st quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc now owns 94 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 1st quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Maseco LLP purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $45,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Melius raised shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $500.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $475.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $331.00 to $388.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $466.53.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT stock opened at $486.86 on Wednesday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $439.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $380.92. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $267.30 and a 12-month high of $505.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $228.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.76, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.88 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.95% and a net margin of 14.95%.The business had revenue of $16.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $5.99 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 20th will be issued a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 20th. Caterpillar's payout ratio is 30.72%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total transaction of $902,649.70. Following the sale, the insider owned 8,632 shares in the company, valued at $3,605,586.40. This represents a 20.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total value of $952,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,917 shares in the company, valued at $2,835,970. This trade represents a 25.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 38,819 shares of company stock valued at $16,885,492. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Caterpillar

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.

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