Hardy Reed LLC Sells 59 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Hardy Reed LLC reduced its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 1.4% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 4,092 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 59 shares during the period. Hardy Reed LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,589,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of CAT. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Compass Financial Services Inc raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 49.2% during the first quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc now owns 94 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Maseco LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Park Place Capital Corp increased its position in Caterpillar by 47.6% in the 2nd quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 124 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE CAT opened at $495.80 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $438.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $380.18. The firm has a market cap of $232.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.22, a PEG ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $267.30 and a 1 year high of $505.59.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.88 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $16.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.14 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 48.95% and a net margin of 14.95%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.99 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 20th will be given a dividend of $1.51 per share. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 20th. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.72%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on CAT. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Tuesday, September 23rd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $383.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $495.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $331.00 to $388.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Melius Research upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $500.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $466.53.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Caterpillar news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total value of $902,649.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 8,632 shares in the company, valued at $3,605,586.40. This represents a 20.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total transaction of $952,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,917 shares in the company, valued at $2,835,970. This trade represents a 25.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 38,819 shares of company stock valued at $16,885,492. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

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.