Clarus Group Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Clarus Group Inc. reduced its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 31.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,711 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 773 shares during the quarter. Clarus Group Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $669,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar by 2.6% during the third quarter. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC now owns 1,037 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $405,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.6% during the third quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 1,807 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $707,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Souders Financial Advisors raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.8% during the second quarter. Souders Financial Advisors now owns 3,657 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,218,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Davis Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 2.1% during the first quarter. Davis Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,454 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $541,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Southland Equity Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 4.0% during the first quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC now owns 784 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $287,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $380.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Raymond James initiated coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Friday, June 28th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued 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 $355.50.

Insider Activity

In other Caterpillar news, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $962,272.78. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $962,272.78. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total value of $1,018,878.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 15,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,347,825.20. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT traded down $1.84 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $390.61. 567,888 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,633,371. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $191.03 billion, a PE ratio of 17.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. The company’s 50-day moving average is $363.86 and its 200 day moving average is $350.16. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $223.76 and a 52 week high of $403.60.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.53 by $0.46. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.58% and a return on equity of 59.88%. The business had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.91 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.55 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.91 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 21st. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 25.46%.

About Caterpillar

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.