Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Purchased by Forsta AP Fonden

Forsta AP Fonden lifted its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 143,400 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $52,020,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 635,750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $231,686,000 after buying an additional 10,212 shares in the last quarter. West Wealth Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter worth $230,000. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 5.6% during the third quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 116,566 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $45,591,000 after purchasing an additional 6,212 shares during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI boosted its position in shares of Caterpillar by 43.0% in the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 13,902 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,437,000 after purchasing an additional 4,181 shares during the period. Finally, Cadinha & Co. LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter worth about $11,084,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.09, for a total value of $3,800,900.00. Following 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO William E. Schaupp sold 968 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.98, for a total value of $368,788.64. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,686 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $642,332.28. This represents a 36.47 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 33,868 shares of company stock valued at $13,480,389. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on CAT shares. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $295.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $500.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Robert W. Baird raised 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. Morgan Stanley lowered Caterpillar from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $349.00 to $332.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded Caterpillar from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $365.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Caterpillar has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $384.60.

Caterpillar Price Performance

NYSE CAT opened at $390.29 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $188.43 billion, a PE ratio of 18.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.13. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $297.45 and a 12-month high of $418.50. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $381.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $370.23.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.33 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $16.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.26% and a return on equity of 59.09%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.52 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.45%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.15%.

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.