Northeast Investment Management Sells 2,001 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Northeast Investment Management decreased its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 9.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 18,153 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 2,001 shares during the quarter. Northeast Investment Management's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $5,987,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 6,653 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,133,617.10. This represents a 5.97% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CAT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group raised Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price target for the company from $272.00 to $357.00 in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Bank of America increased their target price on Caterpillar from $335.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley raised Caterpillar from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $300.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised shares of Caterpillar from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $309.00 to $395.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $372.92.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.4%

CAT traded down $1.55 during trading on Thursday, reaching $361.59. The company had a trading volume of 768,820 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,582,996. The company has a market cap of $170.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.38, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.37. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The business's fifty day moving average price is $323.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $349.29.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. The company had revenue of $14.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.60 earnings per share. The company's revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current 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 given a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.67%. This is an increase from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is 27.49%.

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.