Plimoth Trust Co. LLC Sells 100 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Plimoth Trust Co. LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,712 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar makes up 1.1% of Plimoth Trust Co. LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $4,234,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CAT. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 20.0% in the 4th quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 21,343 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,310,000 after purchasing an additional 3,558 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 17.2% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 9,037 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,308,000 after purchasing an additional 1,327 shares during the period. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,295 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,270,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Caterpillar during the first quarter valued at $926,000. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new position in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at $222,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of Caterpillar stock traded down $0.61 on Thursday, reaching $342.36. 2,014,511 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,709,325. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1-year low of $223.76 and a 1-year high of $382.01. The firm has a market cap of $167.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.12. The company’s 50-day moving average is $335.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $341.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.35.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.53 by $0.46. The firm had revenue of $16.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.91 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.61% and a net margin of 16.79%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $5.55 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 12th that permits the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to reacquire up to 12.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Caterpillar Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 22nd were issued a dividend of $1.41 per share. This is a positive change from Caterpillar’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 22nd. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In related news, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 1,508 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total transaction of $527,800.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,480,250. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on CAT shares. StockNews.com raised Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 10th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $399.00 target price (up from $390.00) on shares of Caterpillar in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Caterpillar from $338.00 to $321.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $293.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $336.31.

About Caterpillar

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.