WealthShield Partners LLC Lowers Stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

WealthShield Partners LLC cut its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 21.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 877 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 242 shares during the period. WealthShield Partners LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $318,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 0.7% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,213,455 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,987,206,000 after acquiring an additional 67,148 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,952,632 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,501,554,000 after purchasing an additional 205,012 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,627,513 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,418,793,000 after purchasing an additional 64,452 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,227,378 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,262,290,000 after purchasing an additional 8,088 shares during the period. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,349,608 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $527,859,000 after buying an additional 30,609 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

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 transaction, the insider now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 45,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,173,226.38. The trade was a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 18,704 shares of company stock valued at $7,226,584. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on CAT shares. UBS Group raised shares of Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. DA Davidson boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $383.80.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE CAT opened at $338.65 on Tuesday. 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 Inc. has a 52 week low of $307.05 and a 52 week high of $418.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $161.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.34, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a fifty day moving average of $368.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $373.05.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly 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, analysts predict 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 was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st were issued a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.67%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 25.56%.

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.