Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ Lowers Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Key Points

• Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ sold 127,996 shares of Caterpillar Inc., reducing its holdings by 43.2% to 168,492 shares, valued at approximately $55.57 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Geode Capital Management and Northern Trust Corp, increased their positions in Caterpillar during the previous quarter.
• Caterpillar has increased its quarterly dividend from $1.41 to $1.51 per share, representing an annual dividend yield of 1.41% as of the upcoming payment date.

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ cut its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 43.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 168,492 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 127,996 shares during the period. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $55,569,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CAT. Victrix Investment Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth about $2,090,000. Pacific Point Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $579,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 18.6% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 191,640 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $63,202,000 after buying an additional 30,070 shares during the period. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 22,689 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $7,483,000 after buying an additional 743 shares during the period. Finally, Liberty Square Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 5.8% in the 1st quarter. Liberty Square Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,636 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $540,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on CAT shares. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $335.00 to $383.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Baird R W raised shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $395.00 to $483.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Melius Research upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $500.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and issued a $420.00 price target (up previously from $370.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Caterpillar presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $419.33.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Caterpillar stock traded down $6.58 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $426.37. 1,103,861 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,674,482. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.77. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $267.30 and a fifty-two week high of $436.40. The company has a market capitalization of $200.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.38. The firm's fifty day moving average is $378.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $352.33.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released 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). The business had revenue of $14.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.64 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 15.71% and a return on equity of 53.77%. The firm's revenue was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $5.60 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be issued a $1.51 dividend. This is an increase from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is 29.43%.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 6,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,133,617.10. The trade was a 5.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.