Stockman Wealth Management Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Caterpillar Inc. $CAT

Stockman Wealth Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 39,113 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,536 shares during the period. Caterpillar accounts for about 2.3% of Stockman Wealth Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Stockman Wealth Management Inc.’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $18,663,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kilter Group LLC bought a new position in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Caterpillar in the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. RiverPark Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Harbor Asset Planning Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Caterpillar during the second quarter valued at about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director David Maclennan bought 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $568.86 per share, for a total transaction of $170,658.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 7,947 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,520,730.42. The trade was a 3.92% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Jason Kaiser sold 10,707 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $563.60, for a total transaction of $6,034,465.20. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,649 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,874,576.40. This trade represents a 55.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 61,895 shares of company stock worth $34,007,516 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Caterpillar Price Performance

Shares of CAT stock opened at $583.09 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $568.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $476.72. Caterpillar Inc. has a 52-week low of $267.30 and a 52-week high of $627.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $272.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.57.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 3rd. The industrial products company reported $4.95 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.52 by $0.43. Caterpillar had a return on equity of 47.16% and a net margin of 14.34%.The company had revenue of $17.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.72 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $5.17 EPS. Caterpillar’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Caterpillar Inc. will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 20th. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. Caterpillar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on CAT. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $476.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 17th. Argus boosted their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $460.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Caterpillar from $650.00 to $730.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on Caterpillar from $557.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Caterpillar from $485.00 to $555.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Caterpillar currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $616.00.

Caterpillar Profile

Caterpillar Inc is a global manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and locomotives. The company’s product portfolio includes earthmoving machines such as excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders and off‑highway trucks, as well as a range of power generation products including generator sets and power systems for industrial and commercial use. Caterpillar serves customers across heavy construction, mining, energy, transportation and related industries with both equipment and integrated technology solutions.

In addition to manufacturing, Caterpillar provides a broad range of aftermarket parts and support services, including maintenance, repair, remanufacturing and fleet management tools.