Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Stake Cut by Kercheville Advisors LLC

Kercheville Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 45.1% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,850 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,340 shares during the period. Kercheville Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $2,311,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 440.0% in the 2nd quarter. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. now owns 27 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Matrix Trust Co grew its position in shares of Caterpillar by 93.8% during the 2nd quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 31 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. Lam Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, Tacita Capital Inc acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the second quarter worth about $47,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Caterpillar news, CEO Joseph E. Creed sold 32,401 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Friday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $808.98, for a total transaction of $26,211,760.98. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 34,555 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,954,303.90. The trade was a 48.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

NYSE CAT traded down $5.80 on Monday, hitting $724.96. The stock had a trading volume of 2,640,740 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,825,382. The company’s 50-day moving average is $812.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $856.69. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $510.21 and a one year high of $1,073.46. The stock has a market cap of $333.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The industrial products company reported $8.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.22 by $1.95. The company had revenue of $20.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.34 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 55.53% and a net margin of 14.51%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.72 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 27.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 19th. Investors of record on Monday, October 26th will be given a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 26th. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on CAT shares. Robert W. Baird set a $970.00 target price on Caterpillar in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 10th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Caterpillar from $1,100.00 to $950.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Freedom Broker upgraded Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $980.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price objective on Caterpillar from $1,225.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $967.83.

Caterpillar Profile

Caterpillar Inc is a manufacturer of construction, mining, and industrial equipment. Its product portfolio includes excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders, motor graders, articulated trucks, and other machinery used in construction, infrastructure development, mining, quarrying, forestry, and related industries. The company also produces diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, generator sets, and other power-generation and transportation equipment.

Caterpillar operates through businesses focused on construction industries, resource industries, and energy and transportation.