Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Sowell Financial Services LLC

Sowell Financial Services LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 7.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 12,424 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $4,507,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $353,231,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 50,072.7% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 804,770 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $291,938,000 after buying an additional 803,166 shares during the last quarter. Amundi grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 17.3% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,166,087 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $782,109,000 after buying an additional 318,891 shares in the last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI increased its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 4,018.6% in the 3rd quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 255,355 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $99,874,000 after acquiring an additional 249,155 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 36,168.5% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 227,041 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $82,361,000 after purchasing an additional 226,415 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CAT opened at $350.97 on Friday. 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 $167.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.15. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $363.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $372.77. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $307.05 and a twelve month high of $418.50.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st were given a $1.41 dividend. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of Caterpillar 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 represents a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CAT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. DA Davidson raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Wedbush raised shares of Caterpillar to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their target price on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $438.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $383.80.

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.