The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Has $122.41 Million Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company has reduced its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. by 13.2%, selling 56,643 shares during the first quarter, leaving it with 371,177 shares valued at approximately $122.4 million.
• Analysts have raised price targets for Caterpillar, with targets from Bank of America set at $495.00 and Citigroup at $500.00, reflecting a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" on the stock.
• Caterpillar recently announced an increase in its quarterly dividend, now paying $1.51 per share, up from $1.41, indicating a commitment to returning value to shareholders.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lowered its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 13.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 371,177 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 56,643 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned about 0.08% of Caterpillar worth $122,414,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Curat Global LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the first quarter worth about $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $475.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $460.00 to $495.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Melius Research raised Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $500.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $457.20.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other news, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total value of $952,840.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 6,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,835,970. This represents a 25.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total value of $902,649.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,605,586.40. This represents a 20.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.3%

CAT traded down $1.32 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $414.73. 1,462,285 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,756,142. The stock has a market cap of $194.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.41. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $414.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $361.08. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $267.30 and a twelve month high of $441.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.34.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.88 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $16.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.14 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.95% and a net margin of 14.95%.Caterpillar's quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.99 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st were paid a $1.51 dividend. This is an increase from Caterpillar's previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 21st. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Caterpillar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.72%.

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.