Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Verus Capital Partners LLC

Verus Capital Partners LLC lowered its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,340 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 54 shares during the quarter. Verus Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,212,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 334.8% during the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Kimelman & Baird LLC increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 42.9% in the third quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Trading Down 0.6 %

Caterpillar stock opened at $340.68 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $366.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $372.66. 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 $162.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.44, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.12. 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 quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. Sell-side analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st were paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on CAT. Wedbush raised shares of Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James upgraded Caterpillar from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America cut their price objective on Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $383.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the company’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 directly 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 SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $365.57 per share, for a total transaction of $36,557.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,116,085.21. This trade represents a 3.39 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 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.