Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Mizuho Securities USA LLC

Key Points

• Mizuho Securities USA LLC reduced its stake in Caterpillar Inc. by 16.4% in Q1, now holding 38,268 shares worth approximately $12.62 million.
• Several hedge funds significantly increased their positions in Caterpillar, with GAMMA Investing LLC up by 43,447.3% and now owning shares worth over $1.23 billion.
• Caterpillar recently announced a dividend increase from $1.41 to $1.51 per share, representing a 1.5% yield and indicating a healthy dividend payout ratio of 30.72%.

Mizuho Securities USA LLC lessened its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 16.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 38,268 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 7,491 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $12,621,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Victrix Investment Advisors purchased a new stake in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,090,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.5% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,304,448 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,089,798,000 after buying an additional 15,347 shares during the period. Pacific Point Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth approximately $579,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Caterpillar by 18.6% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 191,640 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $63,202,000 after acquiring an additional 30,070 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crestwood Advisors Group LLC raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 3.4% in the first quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 22,689 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $7,483,000 after purchasing an additional 743 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on CAT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $475.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Melius upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $500.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Caterpillar from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $300.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $414.00 to $507.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $272.00 to $357.00 in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $444.00.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of Caterpillar stock traded down $8.13 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $408.40. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,415,993 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,969,034. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $267.30 and a 12-month high of $441.15. 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 business has a 50 day moving average price of $394.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $355.11. The company has a market cap of $191.32 billion, a PE ratio of 20.77, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.40.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.88 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.95% and a net margin of 14.95%. The firm 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 earned $5.99 EPS. The business's revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders 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 yield of 1.5%. This is a positive change from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar's payout ratio is currently 30.72%.

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.