Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Regal Investment Advisors LLC

Regal Investment Advisors LLC lessened its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 6.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,952 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 189 shares during the period. Regal Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,071,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at $2,184,364,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth about $353,231,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Caterpillar by 50,072.7% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1,278.6% during 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 stake in shares of Caterpillar by 17.3% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,166,087 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $782,109,000 after purchasing an additional 318,891 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CAT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Caterpillar from $490.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Wedbush upgraded shares of Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. 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. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $430.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $365.87.

Caterpillar Trading Down 1.6 %

NYSE:CAT opened at $293.37 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $140.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.21. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $331.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $365.85. 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 52 week low of $267.30 and a 52 week high of $418.50.

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

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.92%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is 25.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total transaction of $860,147.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 6,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,225,742.50. The trade was a 27.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,182 shares in the company, valued at $17,173,226.38. This trade represents a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Company 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.