Geode Capital Management LLC Increases Holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,213,455 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 67,148 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned approximately 2.12% of Caterpillar worth $3,987,206,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 39,534.0% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,136,667 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $8,356,930,000 after buying an additional 2,131,276 shares in the last quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd lifted its position in Caterpillar by 3,319.7% in the 2nd quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 275,011 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $91,606,000 after acquiring an additional 266,969 shares in the last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 4,018.6% during the 3rd quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 255,355 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $99,874,000 after purchasing an additional 249,155 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,952,632 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,501,554,000 after purchasing an additional 205,012 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec raised its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 34.4% in the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 782,133 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $305,908,000 after purchasing an additional 200,210 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Caterpillar Trading Up 1.1 %

Caterpillar stock opened at $399.34 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $259.12 and a 12-month high of $418.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $192.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.10. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $393.01 and a 200 day moving average of $359.52.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by ($0.16). Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%. The firm had revenue of $16.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.52 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st were given a dividend of $1.41 per share. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 21st. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Evercore ISI cut shares of Caterpillar from an “in-line” rating to an “underperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $321.00 to $365.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. StockNews.com cut shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $500.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $374.69.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Gerald Johnson purchased 100 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $398.57 per share, for a total transaction of $39,857.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,176,977.21. The trade was a 3.51 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Daniel M. Dickinson sold 1,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $418.00, for a total value of $543,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,079,968. The trade was a 20.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 23,868 shares of company stock valued at $9,679,489. Corporate 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.