Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by Lakewood Asset Management LLC

Lakewood Asset Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,304 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 31 shares during the quarter. Lakewood Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,199,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the third quarter valued at $36,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC boosted its stake in shares of Caterpillar by 42.9% during the third quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter worth about $54,000. Finally, SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. raised its stake in Caterpillar by 47.2% in the 3rd quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 156 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CAT opened at $375.75 on Thursday. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $276.94 and a 1 year high of $418.50. The firm has a market cap of $181.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.42, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.13. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $380.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $366.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.40.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $5.52 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be given a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.50%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on Caterpillar from $471.00 to $455.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley downgraded Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Caterpillar from $299.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, StockNews.com cut Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $380.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In other news, Director Gerald Johnson acquired 100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $398.57 per share, for a total transaction of $39,857.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,176,977.21. This trade represents a 3.51 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 6,279 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $408.59, for a total value of $2,565,536.61. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,714,323.35. This trade represents a 15.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, 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.