Natixis Advisors LLC Trims Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Key Points

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Natixis Advisors LLC cut its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 5.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 234,021 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 14,527 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $77,180,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 43,447.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,730,259 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,230,239,000 after purchasing an additional 3,721,693 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Caterpillar by 2,723.1% during the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,414,280 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $466,430,000 after acquiring an additional 1,364,183 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its position in Caterpillar by 69.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,924,054 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,060,730,000 after acquiring an additional 1,196,861 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Caterpillar by 11.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,847,330 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,483,937,000 after acquiring an additional 724,477 shares during the last quarter. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. boosted its position in Caterpillar by 1,278.6% during the fourth quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 440,641 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $154,367,000 after acquiring an additional 408,678 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.1%

CAT opened at $434.69 on Thursday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $267.30 and a 1-year high of $436.83. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $382.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $353.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $204.76 billion, a PE ratio of 21.18, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.38.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 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 business had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.60 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be given a dividend of $1.51 per share. This is a boost from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.39%. Caterpillar's payout ratio is currently 29.43%.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan purchased 375 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following 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 filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on CAT shares. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $335.00 to $383.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating and set a $420.00 target price (up from $370.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $395.00 to $483.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $395.00 to $422.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, June 20th. Seven equities 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 company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $419.33.

Caterpillar Company 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.

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