Nichols & Pratt Advisers LLP MA Has $26.26 Million Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Nichols & Pratt Advisers LLP MA reduced its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 11.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 72,395 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 9,497 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar accounts for 1.8% of Nichols & Pratt Advisers LLP MA’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Nichols & Pratt Advisers LLP MA’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $26,262,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the third quarter worth $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 334.8% in the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Stock Up 1.1 %

NYSE CAT opened at $343.90 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $365.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $372.71. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $307.05 and a twelve month high of $418.50. The stock has a market cap of $164.36 billion, a PE ratio of 15.58, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.12.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. On average, research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st were given a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on CAT. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Wedbush raised shares of Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $455.00 to $438.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $383.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $398.57 per share, with a total value of $39,857.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,176,977.21. This represents a 3.51 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.