Private Trust Co. NA Reduces Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Private Trust Co. NA trimmed its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 8.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,762 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 691 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $2,560,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of CAT. Carrera Capital Advisors raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Carrera Capital Advisors now owns 1,238 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $449,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. BBR Partners LLC grew its stake in Caterpillar by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. BBR Partners LLC now owns 4,162 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,510,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 962 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $349,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its position in Caterpillar by 20.3% during the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 184 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Finally, Asset Management Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 10,771 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,907,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CAT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley raised shares of 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 report on Wednesday, April 16th. Oppenheimer raised Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $395.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Robert W. Baird lifted 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and set a $420.00 price objective (up from $370.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $380.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price 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 approximately $2,133,617.10. This represents a 5.97% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE CAT traded up $0.90 on Friday, reaching $399.33. 1,737,838 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,523,847. The firm has a market capitalization of $188.10 billion, a PE ratio of 19.46, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.38. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $267.30 and a one year high of $418.50. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $350.10 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $346.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43.

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 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 firm 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 company posted $5.60 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

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

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.