Verdence Capital Advisors LLC Increases Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 11.5% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 8,472 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 877 shares during the quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $3,314,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in CAT. Markel Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 318,750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $124,670,000 after acquiring an additional 7,250 shares during the last quarter. Carson Advisory Inc. grew its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Carson Advisory Inc. now owns 2,535 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $991,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter worth about $4,269,000. Equitable Trust Co. raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 15,271 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,973,000 after buying an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc now owns 97,282 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $38,037,000 after acquiring an additional 879 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Lange Bob De sold 12,657 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.25, for a total value of $5,192,534.25. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 71,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,171,646.75. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,347,825.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 12,657 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.25, for a total value of $5,192,534.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 71,107 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,171,646.75. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 23,749 shares of company stock worth $9,251,912. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $393.37 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $376.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $352.75. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $233.82 and a 12 month high of $418.50. The firm has a market cap of $190.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its earnings results 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 net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%. The firm had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.37 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.52 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 26.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Caterpillar from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $376.00 to $434.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 19th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $362.40.

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.