Alps Advisors Inc. Sells 1,995 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Alps Advisors Inc. reduced its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 14.0% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 12,236 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,995 shares during the quarter. Alps Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $5,838,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Kilter Group LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1,060.0% during the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 58 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. RiverPark Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Argus raised their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $460.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $610.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $708.00 to $735.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. CICC Research initiated coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Friday. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $569.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $690.90.

Caterpillar Stock Up 2.2%

Caterpillar stock opened at $742.51 on Tuesday. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $267.30 and a fifty-two week high of $743.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $347.48 billion, a PE ratio of 39.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.58. The company’s 50-day moving average is $620.65 and its 200-day moving average is $532.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $5.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.67 by $0.49. The firm had revenue of $19.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.81 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 45.76% and a net margin of 13.14%.The business’s revenue was up 17.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $5.14 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 20th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.09%.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $575.06, for a total value of $5,750,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 45,460 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,142,227.60. This represents a 18.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Lange Bob De sold 22,656 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $720.11, for a total transaction of $16,314,812.16. Following the sale, the insider owned 79,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $57,574,954.83. This trade represents a 22.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 130,545 shares of company stock valued at $88,294,733. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Caterpillar

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company’s product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.