QRG Capital Management Inc. Sells 2,636 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

QRG Capital Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 2.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 122,551 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 2,636 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $40,417,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,184,364,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 43,447.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,730,259 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,230,239,000 after buying an additional 3,721,693 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its stake in Caterpillar by 69.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,924,054 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,060,730,000 after acquiring an additional 1,196,861 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $353,231,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 50,072.7% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 804,770 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $291,938,000 after acquiring an additional 803,166 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $335.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Wall Street Zen cut Caterpillar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Caterpillar from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $300.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $272.00 to $357.00 in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Six investment 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 data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $372.92.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:CAT traded up $5.16 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $362.21. 1,579,242 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,560,404. The business's 50-day moving average price is $327.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $347.86. 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 quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $170.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.37.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.35 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $14.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.64 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. The company's revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.60 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. This is an increase from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.67%. Caterpillar's payout ratio is presently 29.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the purchase, the director now owns 6,653 shares in the company, valued at $2,133,617.10. This trade represents a 5.97% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

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.