United Capital Management of KS Inc. Sells 17,618 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Key Points

• United Capital Management of KS Inc. reduced its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. by 56.7%, owning 13,450 shares valued at approximately $4.44 million at the end of the first quarter.
• Corporate insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of Caterpillar's stock, representing a 20.02% decrease in his position, with total proceeds exceeding $902,649.
• Caterpillar announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.51 per share, reflecting a boost from the previous dividend of $1.41 and a yield of 1.4%.

United Capital Management of KS Inc. decreased its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 56.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,450 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 17,618 shares during the period. United Capital Management of KS Inc.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $4,436,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Pacific Point Advisors LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $579,000. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 51.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,409 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,688,000 after acquiring an additional 2,519 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 588 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $213,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 9.6% during the fourth quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 4,468 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,621,000 after buying an additional 391 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Square LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Capital Square LLC now owns 1,802 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $654,000 after buying an additional 113 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total transaction of $902,649.70. Following the sale, the insider owned 8,632 shares in the company, valued at $3,605,586.40. This represents a 20.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on CAT shares. Baird R W upgraded Caterpillar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Caterpillar from $395.00 to $483.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. UBS Group upgraded Caterpillar from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $272.00 to $357.00 in a report on Friday, May 16th. Barclays raised their target price on Caterpillar from $383.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, DA Davidson raised their target price on Caterpillar from $331.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $444.00.

Caterpillar Stock Down 2.4%

NYSE CAT traded down $10.09 during trading on Friday, hitting $407.41. The stock had a trading volume of 3,105,803 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,193,540. The company has a market capitalization of $190.86 billion, a PE ratio of 20.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.40. The company's 50-day moving average price is $399.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $355.78. 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 Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $441.15.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.88 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $16.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.14 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 14.95% and a return on equity of 48.95%. The company's revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.99 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. 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 (DPR) is presently 30.72%.

About Caterpillar

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.