Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Sentry LLC

Sentry LLC lowered its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 12.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 18,281 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,490 shares during the period. Caterpillar makes up 1.3% of Sentry LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Sentry LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $6,631,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Caterpillar in the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 42.9% in the third quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Albion Financial Group UT boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 334.8% in the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC boosted its holdings in Caterpillar by 130.0% in the fourth quarter. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC now owns 115 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Lange Bob De sold 12,657 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.25, for a total value of $5,192,534.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 71,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,171,646.75. The trade was a 15.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,173,226.38. This trade represents a 18.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 33,868 shares of company stock valued at $13,480,389. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on CAT shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. StockNews.com lowered Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Evercore ISI upgraded Caterpillar from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $365.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Morgan Stanley lowered Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $349.00 to $332.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $295.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $384.60.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CAT opened at $394.01 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $190.23 billion, a PE ratio of 18.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.13. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $299.93 and a fifty-two week high of $418.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.40. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $381.43 and a 200-day moving average of $370.62.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 59.09% and a net margin of 16.26%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.15%.

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.