Nuveen Asset Management LLC Decreases Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC reduced its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 6.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,198,389 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 151,226 shares during the quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned about 0.46% of Caterpillar worth $797,488,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on CAT shares. DA Davidson raised their target price on Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley upgraded 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. Oppenheimer upgraded Caterpillar from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $395.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Robert W. Baird upgraded Caterpillar from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $309.00 to $395.00 in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Wedbush upgraded Caterpillar to an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $375.50.

Insider Activity

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 price of $320.70 per share, for a total transaction of $120,262.50. Following the purchase, the director now owns 6,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,133,617.10. This represents a 5.97% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total value of $860,147.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 6,275 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,225,742.50. The trade was a 27.87% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.1%

Caterpillar stock traded up $3.79 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $353.60. 2,558,499 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,639,240. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $317.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $354.09. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $267.30 and a 12-month high of $418.50. The firm has a market cap of $166.56 billion, a PE ratio of 16.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.35 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $14.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.64 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. The business's revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $5.60 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be paid a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. Caterpillar's payout ratio is presently 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.