Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lowered its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 25.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 132,709 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 46,047 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $39,274,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Accurate Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Caterpillar by 15.1% during the third quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,174 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,410,000 after purchasing an additional 678 shares in the last quarter. Vicus Capital purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $210,000. Callahan Advisors LLC grew its stake in Caterpillar by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Callahan Advisors LLC now owns 65,283 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $17,822,000 after acquiring an additional 1,126 shares during the period. Aua Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 25.4% in the 3rd quarter. Aua Capital Management LLC now owns 1,170 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $319,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. raised its position in Caterpillar by 5.0% during the third quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 102,800 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,064,000 after acquiring an additional 4,892 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on CAT. Truist Financial started coverage on Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $390.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $290.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Monday, January 8th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $270.00 target price on the stock. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI downgraded Caterpillar from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $321.00 to $338.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $316.88.

Caterpillar Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $349.76 on Tuesday. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $205.60 and a fifty-two week high of $382.01. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $350.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $301.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The stock has a market cap of $174.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.17.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.48. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.07 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.48%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.10, for a total value of $3,101,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 57,317 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,774,001.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.10, for a total transaction of $3,101,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 57,317 shares in the company, valued at $17,774,001.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 4,575 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.80, for a total transaction of $1,508,835.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 23,474 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,741,725.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 35,769 shares of company stock valued at $11,508,906. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.