Capital Investment Counsel Inc Sells 262 Shares of Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Capital Investment Counsel Inc reduced its position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 1.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,474 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 262 shares during the quarter. Caterpillar comprises about 0.7% of Capital Investment Counsel Inc’s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Capital Investment Counsel Inc’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $5,231,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Pacific Point Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $579,000. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Caterpillar by 51.5% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,409 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,688,000 after acquiring an additional 2,519 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 11.1% in the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 4,923 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,624,000 after acquiring an additional 493 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the 1st quarter valued at about $689,000. Finally, Parcion Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Caterpillar by 1.4% during the first quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC now owns 19,924 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,571,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Caterpillar

In related news, Director David Maclennan acquired 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $568.86 per share, with a total value of $170,658.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 7,947 shares in the company, valued at $4,520,730.42. This trade represents a 3.92% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Donald J. Umpleby III sold 17,166 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Friday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.29, for a total transaction of $8,673,808.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 448,173 shares in the company, valued at approximately $226,457,335.17. The trade was a 3.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 77,846 shares of company stock valued at $38,241,493. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Caterpillar from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $476.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 19th. DA Davidson raised their price objective on shares of Caterpillar from $408.00 to $569.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $570.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. UBS Group increased their target price on Caterpillar from $506.00 to $581.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $612.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Caterpillar has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $596.59.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CAT opened at $573.22 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. The stock has a market cap of $268.25 billion, a PE ratio of 29.43, a PEG ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.51. The company’s fifty day moving average is $501.01 and its 200 day moving average is $424.34. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52 week low of $267.30 and a 52 week high of $596.21.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $4.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.52 by $0.43. The firm had revenue of $17.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.72 billion. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 47.16% and a net margin of 14.34%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.17 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 20th will be paid a $1.51 dividend. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 20th. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 31.01%.

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.