Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Insider Jason Kaiser Sells 2,425 Shares

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,425 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.70, for a total value of $860,147.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,275 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,225,742.50. The trade was a 27.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Caterpillar Stock Performance

Shares of CAT opened at $353.26 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $170.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.01, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.42. Caterpillar Inc. has a 1 year low of $307.05 and a 1 year high of $418.50. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $370.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $372.54.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $5.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.97 by $0.17. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 58.18% and a net margin of 16.65%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.98 EPS for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be issued a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.56%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. North Star Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 82.9% in the 4th quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,261 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $820,000 after purchasing an additional 1,025 shares during the period. Parr Mcknight Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $734,000. McMill Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Caterpillar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $476,000. Vega Investment Solutions purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar in the 4th quarter valued at $434,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on CAT. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Caterpillar from $365.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday. DA Davidson lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $452.00 to $414.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup upped their price target on Caterpillar from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group raised Caterpillar from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $355.00 to $385.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $383.80.

Caterpillar Company 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.