Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Kentucky Retirement Systems

Kentucky Retirement Systems lowered its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 8.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 33,781 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 3,072 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Caterpillar were worth $13,212,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, POM Investment Strategies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2,160.0% during the 2nd quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 113 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.8 %

CAT stock opened at $384.08 on Friday. 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 firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $381.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $354.07. The stock has a market cap of $185.43 billion, a PE ratio of 17.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.10. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $241.81 and a fifty-two week high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $5.52 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.69 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on CAT shares. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $399.00 to $456.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $365.33.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In other news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $338.59 per share, for a total transaction of $33,859.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $962,272.78. This trade represents a 3.65 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 12,657 shares of the business’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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 71,107 shares in the company, valued at $29,171,646.75. This represents a 15.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 23,749 shares of company stock worth $9,251,912 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.29% 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.