Retirement Systems of Alabama Has $78.89 Million Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Retirement Systems of Alabama lowered its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 1.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 239,204 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 3,389 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned about 0.05% of Caterpillar worth $78,889,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CAT. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 6,653 shares in the company, valued at $2,133,617.10. This represents a 5.97% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on CAT. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $335.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. 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 report on Monday, April 14th. UBS Group upgraded Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $272.00 to $357.00 in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Six research 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $372.92.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT stock opened at $359.73 on Friday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $418.50. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $332.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $347.41. The firm has a market cap of $169.45 billion, a PE ratio of 17.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43.

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). The business had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.64 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 53.77% and a net margin of 15.71%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.60 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be paid a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.68%. This is an increase from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.

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