Foundry Partners LLC Decreases Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Foundry Partners LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT - Free Report) by 10.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 69,973 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 8,495 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar makes up approximately 1.2% of Foundry Partners LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Foundry Partners LLC's holdings in Caterpillar were worth $20,689,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake 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 worth $2,343,859,000 after purchasing an additional 9,776,533 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 1.6% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,962,809 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,900,847,000 after purchasing an additional 111,384 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted 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 purchasing an additional 47,258 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 14.9% during 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 last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in 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 worth $892,724,000 after purchasing an additional 92,360 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT stock traded down $1.96 on Friday, reaching $354.66. 2,929,591 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,086,614. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $346.70 and a 200-day moving average of $298.22. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $204.04 and a twelve month high of $382.01. The firm has a market cap of $177.12 billion, a PE ratio of 17.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $5.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.76 by $0.47. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 56.99% and a net margin of 15.41%. The firm had revenue of $17.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.86 earnings per share. Caterpillar's quarterly revenue was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. Caterpillar's payout ratio is 25.82%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Caterpillar news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 4,575 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.80, for a total transaction of $1,508,835.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,474 shares in the company, valued at $7,741,725.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Caterpillar news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 4,575 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.80, for a total transaction of $1,508,835.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,474 shares in the company, valued at $7,741,725.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,194 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.52, for a total value of $6,899,070.88. Following the sale, the insider now owns 61,092 shares in the company, valued at $19,886,667.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 45,769 shares of company stock worth $14,509,306. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $290.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. StockNews.com lowered Caterpillar from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $255.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $307.56.

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.

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