MainStreet Investment Advisors LLC Cuts Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

MainStreet Investment Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 4.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 27,210 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,318 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar makes up 1.3% of MainStreet Investment Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. MainStreet Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $8,974,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in CAT. Pacific Point Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $579,000. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Caterpillar by 51.5% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,409 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,688,000 after purchasing an additional 2,519 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in Caterpillar by 38.3% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,218 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $805,000 after purchasing an additional 614 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC grew its stake in Caterpillar by 196.7% during the fourth quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 1,733 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $629,000 after purchasing an additional 1,149 shares during the period. Finally, Davis R M Inc. grew its stake in Caterpillar by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Davis R M Inc. now owns 3,838 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,392,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the period. 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 Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,653 shares in the company, valued at $2,133,617.10. This represents a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Caterpillar stock traded down $1.78 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $406.55. 1,239,787 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,528,876. The firm has a market capitalization of $191.50 billion, a PE ratio of 19.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.38. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $359.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $347.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $267.30 and a one year high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last issued 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 net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 53.77%. The firm had revenue of $14.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $5.60 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business 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 dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.49%. This is a positive change from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar's payout ratio is presently 29.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on CAT. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $395.00 to $422.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, June 20th. DA Davidson raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Oppenheimer raised Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $395.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Bank of America raised 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. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $404.64.

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.