Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Stock Holdings Increased by Sterling Investment Counsel LLC

Sterling Investment Counsel LLC grew its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 40.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,040 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 301 shares during the quarter. Sterling Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $407,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of CAT. Thompson Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the first quarter valued at $27,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter worth about $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter worth about $28,000. Fairman Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the first quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar during the second quarter valued at about $36,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAT has been the topic of several research reports. Bank of America boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Barclays boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered 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 note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $355.50.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of CAT traded down $0.51 on Wednesday, hitting $387.95. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 249,957 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,625,227. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $365.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $350.37. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $223.76 and a fifty-two week high of $403.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The company has a market capitalization of $189.73 billion, a PE ratio of 17.43, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.53 by $0.46. The business had revenue of $16.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.91 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.58% and a return on equity of 59.88%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $5.55 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.45%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is 25.46%.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total value of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Caterpillar news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total transaction of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at $11,750,181.12. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $962,272.78. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

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.