Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. Lowers Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. lowered its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 8.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,089 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 381 shares during the quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,483,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of CAT. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 0.7% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 729,654 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $285,382,000 after buying an additional 5,371 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its position in Caterpillar by 17.8% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 20,548 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,037,000 after acquiring an additional 3,100 shares in the last quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 65.7% during the third quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. now owns 3,678 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,439,000 after purchasing an additional 1,458 shares in the last quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the third quarter valued at approximately $433,000. Finally, Martingale Asset Management L P grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 99.6% in the third quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 8,563 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,349,000 after purchasing an additional 4,273 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

CAT stock opened at $329.65 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The company has a market capitalization of $157.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.94, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.15. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $354.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $371.98. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $307.05 and a twelve month high of $418.50.

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 the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total transaction of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,173,226.38. This represents a 18.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares in the company, 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.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Caterpillar from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $455.00 to $438.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $383.80.

About Caterpillar

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.