Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Gradient Capital Advisors LLC

Gradient Capital Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 9.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,483 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 146 shares during the quarter. Gradient Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $543,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 290.6% in the first quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 4,484 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,643,000 after acquiring an additional 3,336 shares during the period. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the first quarter worth $245,000. Merrion Investment Management Co LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the first quarter worth $366,000. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 17.5% during the first quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 31,502 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $11,543,000 after purchasing an additional 4,700 shares during the period. Finally, Founders Financial Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2.7% during the first quarter. Founders Financial Securities LLC now owns 3,669 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,345,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $356.90, for a total transaction of $7,797,194.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 71,115 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,380,943.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Caterpillar news, insider Lange Bob De sold 21,847 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $356.90, for a total transaction of $7,797,194.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 71,115 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,380,943.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.00, for a total value of $512,720.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 20,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,807,820. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CAT traded up $5.64 during trading on Friday, reaching $333.10. The stock had a trading volume of 8,891,479 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,519,845. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $223.76 and a one year high of $382.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.35. The stock has a market cap of $162.90 billion, a PE ratio of 15.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.14. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $340.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $329.04.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.12 by $0.48. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.07 billion. On average, research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 22nd. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.69%. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 25.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on CAT shares. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Citigroup started coverage on Caterpillar in a report on Wednesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $380.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the company from $293.00 to $350.00 in a report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Caterpillar from $357.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $329.63.

Caterpillar Company 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.