Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Consolidated Capital Management LLC

Consolidated Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,620 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 188 shares during the period. Caterpillar makes up about 1.5% of Consolidated Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Consolidated Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $3,490,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Caterpillar by 0.7% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,213,455 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,987,206,000 after acquiring an additional 67,148 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in 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 buying an additional 205,012 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2.0% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,862,443 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,286,582,000 after buying an additional 75,973 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,627,513 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,418,793,000 after acquiring an additional 64,452 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,227,378 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,262,290,000 after acquiring an additional 8,088 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $386.03 on Monday. The company 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. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $277.66 and a 1 year high of $418.50. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $380.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $367.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%. The company had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $5.52 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.68 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total transaction of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at $17,173,226.38. This trade represents a 18.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,664 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $378.84, for a total value of $1,009,229.76. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 12,951 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,906,356.84. This represents a 17.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 33,868 shares of company stock worth $13,480,389. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CAT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. StockNews.com downgraded Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Caterpillar from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $365.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $460.00 to $420.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $380.60.

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.