Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Insider Jason Kaiser Sells 2,425 Shares

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total value of $860,147.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 6,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,225,742.50. The trade was a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

CAT stock traded down $3.14 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $350.87. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 422,644 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,340,767. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $370.89 and its 200 day moving average price is $372.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $307.05 and a 1 year high of $418.50. The stock has a market cap of $169.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.90, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.12.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.98 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be given a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $438.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Caterpillar from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $383.13.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

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.