Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund Has $15.02 Million Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund decreased its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 41,393 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 117 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $15,016,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in CAT. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 334.8% in the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Kimelman & Baird LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar by 42.9% during the 3rd quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 130.0% in the fourth quarter. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC now owns 115 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $342.37 on Wednesday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $307.05 and a 52-week high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42. The company has a market capitalization of $163.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $367.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $373.10.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st were issued a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.65%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on CAT. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. UBS Group raised Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $383.80.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total transaction of $860,147.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,225,742.50. This trade represents a 27.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $398.57 per share, for a total transaction of $39,857.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,176,977.21. This represents a 3.51 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 18,704 shares of company stock worth $7,226,584. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.