Teacher Retirement System of Texas Sells 81,043 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas reduced its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 31.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 175,583 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 81,043 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas' holdings in Caterpillar were worth $57,907,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the completion of 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT traded up $0.90 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $399.33. 1,737,838 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,523,847. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $188.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.38. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $267.30 and a fifty-two week high of $418.50. The business's 50 day moving average is $350.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $346.79.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its 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). 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 analysts' expectations of $14.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.60 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect 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. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. This is a positive change from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio is 29.43%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on CAT. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Caterpillar from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $300.00 to $283.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Oppenheimer raised shares of Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $395.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $395.00 to $422.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $420.00 price target (up previously from $370.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. 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's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $380.83.

Caterpillar Company 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.