Cypress Capital Group Lowers Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Cypress Capital Group lessened its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 19.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,684 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 889 shares during the quarter. Cypress Capital Group’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,336,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. FSM Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. FSM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 688 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $262,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 4,247 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,541,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Wagner Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Wagner Wealth Management LLC now owns 668 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $242,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Washington Trust Bank lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1.2% during the third quarter. Washington Trust Bank now owns 2,349 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $919,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Channel Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Channel Wealth LLC now owns 1,468 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $533,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CAT has been the topic of several research reports. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com cut shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $455.00 to $438.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $383.80.

Caterpillar Stock Down 1.7 %

CAT stock opened at $326.45 on Wednesday. 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 stock has a market cap of $156.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.79, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.12. The company’s 50 day moving average is $364.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $372.98. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $307.05 and a twelve month high of $418.50.

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

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st were given a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.73%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.56%.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In other news, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $365.57 per share, for a total transaction of $36,557.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,053 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,116,085.21. This represents a 3.39 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,225,742.50. This trade represents a 27.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.