Insider Selling: Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) CFO Sells $3,800,900.00 in Stock

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,173,226.38. This represents a 18.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of CAT stock opened at $386.03 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $277.66 and a 12 month high of $418.50. The firm has a market cap of $186.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.90, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.13. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $380.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $367.29.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.52 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.68 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.15%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Caterpillar

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 39,534.0% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,136,667 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,356,930,000 after buying an additional 2,131,276 shares during the period. Altshuler Shaham Ltd grew its stake in Caterpillar by 3,319.7% in the second quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 275,011 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $91,606,000 after acquiring an additional 266,969 shares during the period. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 4,018.6% in the third quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 255,355 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $99,874,000 after acquiring an additional 249,155 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 2.3% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,952,632 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,501,554,000 after purchasing an additional 205,012 shares during the period. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 34.4% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 782,133 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $305,908,000 after purchasing an additional 200,210 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on CAT shares. Morgan Stanley cut Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price 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. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Caterpillar from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $365.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $460.00 to $420.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price target on Caterpillar from $471.00 to $455.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $380.60.

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.