Callahan Advisors LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Callahan Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.0% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 55,346 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 27 shares during the period. Caterpillar makes up approximately 2.1% of Callahan Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Callahan Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $21,647,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Security Advisor Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the third quarter valued at approximately $203,000. Catalina Capital Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 2,691 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,053,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Balentine LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 389.7% in the 3rd quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 3,359 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,314,000 after purchasing an additional 2,673 shares in the last quarter. Focused Wealth Management Inc boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Focused Wealth Management Inc now owns 7,668 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,999,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, MinichMacGregor Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. MinichMacGregor Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,226 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $479,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Caterpillar news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at $11,750,181.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now owns 33,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.98, for a total transaction of $368,788.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,686 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $642,332.28. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 9,792 shares of company stock worth $3,515,978. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Three equities research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $358.19.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE:CAT opened at $383.37 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $373.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $351.65. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $233.57 and a twelve month high of $403.60. The company has a market capitalization of $185.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.10.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.09% and a net margin of 16.26%. The firm had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.52 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.47%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

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.