Asset Dedication LLC Decreases Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Asset Dedication LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 18.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 14,091 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 3,132 shares during the period. Asset Dedication LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $5,111,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 334.8% in the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 42.9% in the 3rd quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 130.0% in the 4th quarter. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC now owns 115 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on CAT shares. Morgan Stanley cut Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Caterpillar from $471.00 to $455.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. StockNews.com cut Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Evercore ISI upgraded Caterpillar from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $365.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $295.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $384.60.

Caterpillar Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $390.29 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $188.43 billion, a PE ratio of 18.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The business’s fifty day moving average is $381.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $370.23. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $297.45 and a fifty-two week high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.09% and a net margin of 16.26%. The firm had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.52 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.45%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.15%.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.98, for a total value of $368,788.64. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,686 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $642,332.28. This trade represents a 36.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,664 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $378.84, for a total transaction of $1,009,229.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,951 shares in the company, valued at $4,906,356.84. This represents a 17.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 33,868 shares of company stock valued at $13,480,389. Insiders own 0.29% 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.