WealthShield Partners LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

WealthShield Partners LLC lessened its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 21.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 877 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 242 shares during the quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $318,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT boosted its position in Caterpillar by 334.8% during the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC raised its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 130.0% during the 4th quarter. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC now owns 115 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Caterpillar Price Performance

NYSE:CAT opened at $338.65 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $368.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $373.05. The firm has a market cap of $161.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.34, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.12. Caterpillar Inc. has a one year low of $307.05 and a one year high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. Research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st were issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CAT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Wedbush upgraded Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $438.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $355.00 to $385.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $383.80.

Insider Activity at Caterpillar

In related news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at $17,173,226.38. The trade was a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 6,279 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $408.59, for a total value of $2,565,536.61. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 33,565 shares in the company, valued at $13,714,323.35. This represents a 15.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 18,704 shares of company stock worth $7,226,584 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.29% 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.