Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) Shares Sold by ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,983 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 35 shares during the period. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $1,178,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Caterpillar by 272.4% during the first quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 108 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 730.8% in the 1st quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 108 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. Gilfoyle & Co LLC acquired a new stake in Caterpillar during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Caterpillar in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Finally, First Capital Advisors Group LLC. acquired a new position in Caterpillar during the second quarter valued at $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on CAT shares. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Caterpillar from $300.00 to $338.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Monday, January 8th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $270.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $255.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Caterpillar from $385.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Caterpillar in a research note on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $307.56.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:CAT traded down $1.96 during trading on Friday, hitting $354.66. 2,929,591 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,086,614. The stock has a market cap of $177.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. Caterpillar Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $204.04 and a fifty-two week high of $382.01. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $346.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $297.78.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $5.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.76 by $0.47. Caterpillar had a net margin of 15.41% and a return on equity of 56.99%. The firm had revenue of $17.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.86 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.47%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.82%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director David Maclennan purchased 350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $323.37 per share, with a total value of $113,179.50. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 5,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,693,812.06. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Caterpillar news, Director David Maclennan purchased 350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $323.37 per share, for a total transaction of $113,179.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 5,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,693,812.06. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Andrew R. J. Bonfield sold 10,000 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.04, for a total transaction of $3,000,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 67,317 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,197,792.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 45,769 shares of company stock worth $14,509,306 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

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.