Caterpillar Inc. $CAT Shares Sold by Hixon Zuercher LLC

Hixon Zuercher LLC lessened its stake in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 8.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 21,407 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,028 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar comprises about 2.7% of Hixon Zuercher LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Hixon Zuercher LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $8,311,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealthfront Advisers LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 64,699 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $25,117,000 after purchasing an additional 1,197 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 11.2% during the second quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 61,229 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $23,770,000 after buying an additional 6,186 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 426.3% during the second quarter. Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC now owns 721 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $280,000 after acquiring an additional 584 shares during the period. Ingalls & Snyder LLC raised its position in Caterpillar by 0.8% in the second quarter. Ingalls & Snyder LLC now owns 5,540 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,151,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Darden Wealth Group Inc acquired a new stake in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at about $208,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of CAT opened at $522.13 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $464.46 and its 200-day moving average is $399.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a market capitalization of $244.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.46. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $267.30 and a fifty-two week high of $544.99.

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

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 20th will be given a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 20th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Caterpillar

In related news, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 2,324 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the director owned 6,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,835,970. The trade was a 25.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 2,161 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.70, for a total transaction of $902,649.70. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,605,586.40. The trade was a 20.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 55,985 shares of company stock worth $25,559,300 over the last 90 days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on CAT shares. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Caterpillar from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $476.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 19th. Melius Research raised Caterpillar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $500.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Caterpillar from $450.00 to $506.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 13th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Caterpillar from $507.00 to $582.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Caterpillar from $425.00 to $485.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Caterpillar presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $518.19.

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.