Weaver Capital Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Weaver Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 3.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,012 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 188 shares during the quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $2,351,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. GAM Holding AG increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 9.1% in the third quarter. GAM Holding AG now owns 15,230 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,957,000 after purchasing an additional 1,272 shares during the last quarter. Community Trust & Investment Co. bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the third quarter worth approximately $399,000. Segment Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1.7% in the third quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC now owns 40,652 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $15,900,000 after purchasing an additional 685 shares during the last quarter. Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 7.2% in the third quarter. Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. now owns 6,787 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,672,000 after purchasing an additional 458 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Waldron Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1.2% in the third quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,829 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,889,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In related news, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $338.59 per share, with a total value of $33,859.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares in the company, valued at $962,272.78. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Caterpillar news, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $338.59 per share, for a total transaction of $33,859.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $962,272.78. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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 sale, the insider now owns 15,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,347,825.20. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Raymond James began coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Friday, June 28th. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 19th. StockNews.com cut shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $380.00 to $445.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $355.50.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT stock opened at $388.48 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $365.94 and a 200 day moving average of $350.37. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $223.76 and a 52 week high of $403.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $189.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.54, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.53 by $0.46. The company had revenue of $16.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.91 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.88% and a net margin of 16.58%. The firm’s revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.55 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

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

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.