PFG Advisors Lowers Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Key Points

• PFG Advisors cut its stake in Caterpillar by 34.6% in Q4, selling 6,194 shares and ending the quarter with 11,684 shares valued at $6.694 million.
• Caterpillar beat Q4 expectations—EPS $5.16 vs $4.67 and revenue $19.13B vs $17.81B (revenue +17.9% YoY)—and holds a MarketBeat consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a $757.55 target.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.51 per share (annual $6.04; ex-dividend Apr 20, payable May 19), while insiders sold roughly 125,950 shares last quarter worth about $88.6M, with insiders owning 0.33% of the stock.

PFG Advisors decreased its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 34.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 11,684 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 6,194 shares during the quarter. PFG Advisors' holdings in Caterpillar were worth $6,694,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of CAT. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Caterpillar by 3,949.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,228,058 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,494,568,000 after buying an additional 5,098,964 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1,851.8% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,830,414 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $873,382,000 after purchasing an additional 1,736,631 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,553,930 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,695,757,000 after purchasing an additional 609,023 shares during the period. Amundi grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 24.3% during the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 2,375,710 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,176,870,000 after purchasing an additional 464,036 shares during the period. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 61.7% during the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 925,126 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $441,424,000 after purchasing an additional 352,961 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on CAT shares. Robert W. Baird set a $805.00 price target on Caterpillar in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $817.00 to $832.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 21st. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $757.55.

Caterpillar Stock Up 0.5%

NYSE CAT opened at $798.76 on Tuesday. The stock's 50 day moving average is $736.37 and its 200 day moving average is $638.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $282.46 and a 12 month high of $801.77. The stock has a market cap of $371.66 billion, a PE ratio of 42.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.52.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $5.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.67 by $0.49. The business had revenue of $19.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.81 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 45.76% and a net margin of 13.14%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 17.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $5.14 EPS. Research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 22.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 20th. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is 32.09%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 22,656 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $720.11, for a total transaction of $16,314,812.16. Following the transaction, the insider owned 79,953 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $57,574,954.83. The trade was a 22.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Rodney Michael Shurman sold 2,278 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $759.61, for a total value of $1,730,391.58. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,443 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,096,117.23. This represents a 61.22% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 125,950 shares of company stock worth $88,577,390. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

About Caterpillar

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company's product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.

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