Operose Advisors LLC Cuts Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Operose Advisors LLC lowered its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 6.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,780 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 127 shares during the period. Operose Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $646,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,184,364,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $353,231,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 50,072.7% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 804,770 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $291,938,000 after acquiring an additional 803,166 shares during the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1,278.6% in the 4th quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 440,641 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $154,367,000 after purchasing an additional 408,678 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 17.3% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,166,087 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $782,109,000 after purchasing an additional 318,891 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of Caterpillar stock opened at $298.07 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $332.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $366.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $142.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12 month low of $267.30 and a 12 month high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 16.65% and a return on equity of 58.18%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be issued a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on CAT shares. Wedbush upgraded shares of Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com lowered Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $365.87.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total transaction of $860,147.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 6,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,225,742.50. This trade represents a 27.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $365.57 per share, for a total transaction of $36,557.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,053 shares in the company, valued at $1,116,085.21. This represents a 3.39 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase 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.