DnB Asset Management AS Sells 3,101 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

DnB Asset Management AS decreased its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 2.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 129,285 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 3,101 shares during the period. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $31,811,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in CAT. Horan Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 678.6% during the 1st quarter. Horan Securities Inc. now owns 109 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 272.4% during the first quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 108 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 730.8% in the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 108 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. TFC Financial Management Inc. grew its stake in Caterpillar by 470.8% in the first quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 137 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar during the 1st quarter worth $32,000. 69.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on CAT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Caterpillar from $275.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $274.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 2nd. Tigress Financial increased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $266.00 to $282.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 31st. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $283.00 to $323.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 2nd. Finally, Credit Suisse Group lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $279.00 to $334.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $267.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 18,294 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $286.33, for a total transaction of $5,238,121.02. Following the sale, the insider now owns 16,362 shares in the company, valued at $4,684,931.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Caterpillar news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 18,294 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $286.33, for a total value of $5,238,121.02. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 16,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,684,931.46. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 2,923 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.00, for a total value of $815,517.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 16,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,514,778. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 54,918 shares of company stock valued at $15,299,870 in the last three months. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT traded up $4.67 during trading on Thursday, reaching $280.59. 907,867 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,067,217. The stock has a market capitalization of $143.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.13. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $160.60 and a 1 year high of $293.88. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $271.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $241.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $5.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.57 by $0.98. The business had revenue of $17.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.46 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 55.93% and a net margin of 12.91%. The company’s revenue was up 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.18 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Caterpillar

Caterpillar, Inc engages in the manufacture of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, and diesel-electric locomotives. It operates through the following segments: Construction Industries, Resource Industries, Energy and Transportation, Financial Products, and All Other.