Purus Wealth Management LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Purus Wealth Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 3.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 995 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 34 shares during the quarter. Purus Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $331,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 48,353,370 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $14,296,641,000 after purchasing an additional 129,216 shares during the period. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 29,029,953 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,583,372,000 after purchasing an additional 96,479 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,139,040 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,406,471,000 after purchasing an additional 173,108 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 5.7% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,069,840 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,022,488,000 after purchasing an additional 165,358 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 6.3% during the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,020,100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $740,225,000 after purchasing an additional 119,326 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.7 %

NYSE CAT opened at $353.81 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $341.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $344.27. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $223.76 and a twelve month high of $382.01. 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 company has a market capitalization of $173.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.97, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.10.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $16.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.91 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $5.55 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, June 12th that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase up to 12.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on CAT. UBS Group raised their price target on Caterpillar from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Citigroup began coverage on Caterpillar in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $380.00 price target for the company. Raymond James began coverage on Caterpillar in a report on Friday, June 28th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Barclays raised their price target on Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $336.31.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $5,347,825.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total value of $527,800.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 18,515 shares in the company, valued at $6,480,250. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total value of $1,018,878.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 15,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,347,825.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 7,668 shares of company stock worth $2,665,760. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

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.