Xponance Inc. Decreases Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Xponance Inc. reduced its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 3.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 99,207 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 3,593 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.'s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $29,333,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 130,632.5% during the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,784,017 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,343,859,000 after buying an additional 9,776,533 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Caterpillar by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,962,809 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,900,847,000 after acquiring an additional 111,384 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 0.7% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,830,849 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,864,823,000 after acquiring an additional 47,258 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 14.9% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,038,207 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,648,431,000 after purchasing an additional 781,111 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.7% during the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,440,783 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $892,724,000 after purchasing an additional 92,360 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of CAT stock traded down $0.39 on Thursday, hitting $357.93. 1,919,696 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,434,640. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.87. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $204.04 and a 52 week high of $382.01. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $345.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $297.21. The firm has a market cap of $178.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.77, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.17.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $5.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.76 by $0.47. Caterpillar had a net margin of 15.41% and a return on equity of 56.99%. The firm had revenue of $17.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.86 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. Caterpillar's payout ratio is 25.82%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on CAT shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Caterpillar from $290.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Evercore ISI cut shares of Caterpillar from an "outperform" rating to an "in-line" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $321.00 to $338.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Thursday, March 14th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $390.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $307.56.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan acquired 350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $323.37 per share, for a total transaction of $113,179.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,238 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,693,812.06. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director David Maclennan acquired 350 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $323.37 per share, for a total transaction of $113,179.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,693,812.06. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.10, for a total value of $3,101,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 57,317 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,774,001.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 45,769 shares of company stock valued at $14,509,306 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

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.