Bank of Montreal Can Has $308.35 Million Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Bank of Montreal Can reduced its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 5.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 850,002 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 50,969 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can owned 0.18% of Caterpillar worth $308,347,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Caterpillar by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 729,654 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $285,382,000 after acquiring an additional 5,371 shares during the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Caterpillar by 55.0% in the third quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 18,032 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $7,053,000 after purchasing an additional 6,400 shares during the last quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 3.3% during the third quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 27,053 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $10,581,000 after buying an additional 856 shares during the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 47.0% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 169 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northeast Financial Consultants Inc bought a new position in Caterpillar during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $232,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,173,226.38. This represents a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total value of $860,147.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,225,742.50. This represents a 27.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Caterpillar stock opened at $287.57 on Monday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $346.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $371.43. The stock has a market cap of $137.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.03, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $269.43 and a 52 week high of $418.50. 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 (NYSE:CAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on CAT shares. Raymond James upgraded Caterpillar from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $383.80.

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.