Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc.

Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 8.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,089 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 381 shares during the quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,483,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 729,654 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $285,382,000 after purchasing an additional 5,371 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in Caterpillar by 17.8% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 20,548 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $8,037,000 after buying an additional 3,100 shares in the last quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. lifted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 65.7% in the third quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. now owns 3,678 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,439,000 after acquiring an additional 1,458 shares in the last quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the third quarter valued at $433,000. Finally, Martingale Asset Management L P increased its position in Caterpillar by 99.6% during the 3rd quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 8,563 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,349,000 after purchasing an additional 4,273 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on CAT shares. UBS Group upgraded shares of Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Caterpillar from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Raymond James upgraded Caterpillar from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $383.80.

Caterpillar Trading Down 2.8 %

Caterpillar stock opened at $329.65 on Friday. 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 Inc. has a 1 year low of $307.05 and a 1 year high of $418.50. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $354.99 and its 200-day moving average is $371.98. The company has a market cap of $157.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.94, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.15.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other Caterpillar news, Director Gerald Johnson bought 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $365.57 per share, with a total value of $36,557.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,116,085.21. The trade was a 3.39 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares in the company, valued at $2,225,742.50. This trade represents a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.