Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lowered its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 3.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 42,007 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,528 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $13,993,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Next Level Private LLC grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Next Level Private LLC now owns 1,270 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $423,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Privium Fund Management UK Ltd purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at $1,526,000. Naviter Wealth LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar by 1.0% in the second quarter. Naviter Wealth LLC now owns 5,811 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,936,000 after buying an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. LMG Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. LMG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 9,628 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,207,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Little House Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 32.5% during the 2nd quarter. Little House Capital LLC now owns 7,183 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,393,000 after acquiring an additional 1,763 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total transaction of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total transaction of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 33,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,615 shares in the company, valued at $5,347,825.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 7,668 shares of company stock valued at $2,665,760 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Trading Down 4.5 %

Shares of CAT opened at $340.24 on Wednesday. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $223.76 and a fifty-two week high of $382.01. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $339.62 and a two-hundred day moving average of $343.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 1.28. The company has a market capitalization of $166.40 billion, a PE ratio of 15.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.12.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.53 by $0.46. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.88% and a net margin of 16.58%. The firm had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.91 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $5.55 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.87 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, June 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to buy up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 22nd were given a dividend of $1.41 per share. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 22nd. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.66%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is 25.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America decreased their target price on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $376.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $399.00 target price (up previously from $390.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Raymond James assumed coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Citigroup started coverage on Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $380.00 target price on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com raised Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $336.31.

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.