Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH

MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH cut its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 56.3% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 763 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 984 shares during the period. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $252,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $356.79 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $327.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $347.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $168.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.17, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.37. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $4.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.35 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $14.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.64 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.60 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be paid a $1.51 dividend. This is a boost from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.41. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is currently 29.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on CAT. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $396.00 price objective (up from $389.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $375.00 to $373.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 19th. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $325.00 to $331.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $335.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $372.92.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, Director David Maclennan acquired 375 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $320.70 per share, with a total value of $120,262.50. Following the purchase, the director now owns 6,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,133,617.10. This represents a 5.97% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.