Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lessened its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 435,573 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 5,333 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC owned 0.09% of Caterpillar worth $170,361,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Legacy Financial Strategies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 3.1% during the third quarter. Legacy Financial Strategies LLC now owns 10,835 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,238,000 after buying an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its stake in Caterpillar by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 6,435 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,517,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.0% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 608,753 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $238,095,000 after purchasing an additional 5,761 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 14.5% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 18,083 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,073,000 after purchasing an additional 2,294 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mogy Joel R Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 8.7% during the third quarter. Mogy Joel R Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,304 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $510,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total value 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. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,347,825.20. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT stock traded down $0.63 during trading on Friday, hitting $393.86. The stock had a trading volume of 3,024,091 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,638,629. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $223.76 and a twelve month high of $403.60. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $363.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $350.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $192.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.78, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10.

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. The firm had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.91 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.88% and a net margin of 16.58%. The business’s revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $5.55 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is presently 25.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CAT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $380.00 to $445.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley downgraded Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $355.50.

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.