Cooper Financial Group Reduces Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Cooper Financial Group cut its stake in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 21.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,348 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,221 shares during the period. Cooper Financial Group’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,688,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAT. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 2,723.1% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,414,280 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $466,430,000 after acquiring an additional 1,364,183 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Caterpillar in the first quarter valued at approximately $391,788,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 546.6% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 843,093 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $327,297,000 after acquiring an additional 712,711 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 9.1% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,229,080 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,064,951,000 after acquiring an additional 268,300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in Caterpillar by 6.7% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 4,204,445 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,386,626,000 after acquiring an additional 264,054 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on CAT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $475.00 to $520.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Caterpillar from $495.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. DA Davidson upped their price target on Caterpillar from $331.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Caterpillar from $480.00 to $513.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on Caterpillar from $495.00 to $517.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $466.53.

Caterpillar Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE CAT opened at $477.03 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $223.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.26, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. Caterpillar Inc. has a 12-month low of $267.30 and a 12-month high of $485.34. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $433.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $375.62.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $4.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.88 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $16.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.14 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 14.95% and a return on equity of 48.95%. The firm’s revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $5.99 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total value of $952,840.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 6,917 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,835,970. This trade represents a 25.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,166 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $462.65, for a total value of $7,941,849.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 465,339 shares in the company, valued at $215,289,088.35. This trade represents a 3.56% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 38,819 shares of company stock worth $16,885,492. Corporate insiders own 0.33% 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.